Chuck Vs A Blast From The Past
by jaytoyz
Summary: Yeah, I get it...more stuff...Zarnow 'cures' Chuck and fourteen months later, a CIA rep. come a calling...guess who? Ah, you peeked, no fair. Charah because it's what i do..canon?not really..a story that tugs at your heartstrings? Try MGP if that's 4U JT
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **I had this title and then I had some ideas that I wasn't going to use in my other current little stories so I thought I'd write a chapter and see how it went. Zarnow, maybe not the bad guy from S1...could still be a dick, haven't decided. Fourteen months after the intersect shook his worldview up…and now Sarah's back to recruit…anyway, BLDBAL next…TRFW after that…maybe some MGP thrown in…this is simply an excuse for me to write…and maybe get feedback…I do have ideas for more here…I don't own Chuck…or anything in the Chuckverse…and I'm still in the red as far as the whole getting paid to write thing goes. Still having fun though…Jim, thanks for the nudge…as always, your reviews are the icing on my day…thank you very much. I want to apologize for my horrible tardiness in responding to all of your reviews...I have no valid excuse, just been a little busy...and thanks to Spreadthenerd for all of the help...if you've noticed less typos and 'stuuf', it's because of STN's help. Hey, tw, nothing going on, as I said mere words agao, just been a little lazy... JT

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past**

Chuck Bartowski was having an absolutely craptastic day. It had started off with all the earmarks of being a wonderful day until his alarm clock had jarred him from the arms of the woman he'd been seeing, off and on, for the last four months. He reached out and hit the off button and then realized that Samantha hadn't actually been sharing his bed with him. '_**Strike one' **_he said to himself, wondering how much of his day would pass before he 'struck-out'.

His morning ritual had been going about normal, the shower and shaving portion of the day having passed without incident. He'd gotten dressed and was heading for the kitchen when he happened to look into the living room as he passed and _'__**strike two' **_happened. 'God damn it, Morgan!' he silently cursed his room mate when he saw that he'd forgotten the 'no el buffo' rule and was sound asleep on the couch, empty grape soda cans on the coffee table and his lucky game controller laying on his stomach.. His appetite now banished, he decided to wait until he got into work for his morning caffeine. Making sure that he kept his eyes averted, he made his way out of the apartment and was halfway across the courtyard when his phone began ringing. He looked at the display and when he saw who was calling, he thought that maybe, just maybe, he'd get to forget one of the strikes from earlier.

"Good morning , beautiful. Too what do I owe the pleasure of your call?"

"Chuck, I'm sorry to call so early but I have some bad news"

"Sam, what's wrong? How can I help?" Chuck asked, suddenly concerned.

"Chuck, I'm so sorry but" _**'strike three'**_** "**my ex called last night and we spent the whole night talking and, well, I'm going to move back east so we can see if we can make it work. I'm so sorry, Chuck, I really am. You're a really great guy and I just know you'll meet someone"

"I thought I had" he mumbled.

"What was that, Chuck?"

"Nothing, not a thing. So, when are you leaving?"

"I'm actually flying out this morning"

"Well, have a safe trip, Sam. I really hope you find happiness. Good bye" he said and hit the disconnect before he gave in to some odd urge and said something mean spirited. 'Typical' he said to himself as he slipped his phone back into his pocket and resumed his journey to the parking lot. "The Bartowski luck strikes again" he said to no one in particular.

The drive to the Buymore was uneventful which Chuck found surprising. He was sure that the day was shaping up to be a shitstorm of Chuck Bartowski luck and he half expected a piece of space junk to come hurtling through the atmosphere and crush his car into a smoldering crater. Finding all of the Nerdherder parking spaces taken, he ended up parking on the other side of the parking lot because it seemed that everyone had picked today to do their electronics shopping at the Burbank Buymore. He was almost halfway across the parking lot when the clear blue sky decided to show him it's love by opening up and dumping a steady rain on him. By the time he made it to the front doors, he was drenched to the skin and he couldn't help but laugh to himself when he saw that Big Mike was standing just inside, a 'where the hell have you been, Bartowski?' look on his face. 'Well, here we go' he said to himself as he stepped into the store.

"Bartowski!" Big Mike barked at him, "why aren't today's work orders ready to go? The rest of the Nerdherders are waiting for the assignments for the day."

"I'm sorry, Big Mike. I guess the work orders aren't done because I just got here and the manager didn't feel the need to start handing out assignments" he answered and then paused before covering his mouth with his hand just before he sneezed…twice. He watched in amusement as his boss almost skipped backwards, a fearful look on his face.

"Are you sick, Bartowski? Because, if you are, I need you to make sure that you stay away from me. I can't allow myself to become ill"

"I'm sure it's nothing" he answered, "and your concern for my health is touching"

"Ok then, just get to work" he said as he continued to back away. "and do something about the water you've tracked in here, I would hate for anyone to slip because you were careless"

Chuck shook his head as he watched his boss walk away. He almost laughed as he watched Big Mike go out of his way to avoid the NerdHerd counter as he made his way to his office. He toyed with the idea of just taking the day off but he realized that he didn't really have anything else to do, now that Sam was leaving town. He took a deep breath and then a second before walking towards 'Buymoron' central, already dreading having to talk with Jeff and Lester who were standing at the counter, doing their best to ignore the surprisingly large number of customers who were gathered there.

"Alright troops" he said when he made his way behind the counter, "where are we and how can I help?" He cringed when five 'white' shirts and three 'green' shirts all began talking at once, each of them trying their hardest to be the one he heard and the onslaught of sound only served to remind Chuck that he had a splitting headache that he hadn't noticed before walking into the store. "Anna, you're first" he said, wondering just how bad this day was going to turn out to be.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Chuck had just returned from his lunch break and looked at his watch, not at all surprised to find that it was after three. Everyone else had been sure that they got there lunch break and their 'break' break and he'd been left behind the counter until fifteen minutes ago. His lunch had been a bag of chips, a lukewarm soda and the thrill of Morgan yammering at him about his amazing night of gaming which didn't do anything to help the headache that hadn't eased up since he first noticed it earlier in the day. He'd also been sneezing fairly regularly and he was beginning to fear that he was coming down with something.

"Well, Charles, Jeffrey and I are glad that you've decided to return to your post" Lester said as he watched Chuck walk behind the counter. "Perhaps I should speak to Michael if you're unable to fulfill your assistant manager duties"

"Go right ahead" he answered, lacking the strength to point out to Lester that since Harry Tang had been fired for making inappropriate advances to Anna, he'd been doing all of the work without the spectacular three dollar an hour raise that went along with the official title of Assistant Manager. Reaching for his clipboard, he handed new work assignments to both Jeff and Lester, hoping that they'd simply take the papers and leave but not counting on it. Ten minutes later, after a seemingly endless discussion on the merits of Apple versus all other PCs, he finally managed to convince the pair to leave after promising he attend an open mic night where there band would be playing. With a sigh of relief, he allowed his head to sink into his hands.

"Chuck?"

He knew thought he knew the voice that had just called his name but he was sure that he was mistaken. Fourteen months earlier, a government researcher by the name of Dr. Zarnow had proclaimed him 'cured', assuring everyone that mattered that the Intersect program that his good buddy, Bryce Larkin, had sent him, had successfully been removed. Everyone who mattered was thrilled that things had been wrapped up so quickly, General Diane Beckman and CIA Director Graham expressed their pleasure that less than a week had been wasted in Burbank. After a quick handshake, the doctor had disappeared, followed soon after by a grumbling John Casey who had actually grunted goodbye, leaving him alone with the CIA's top agent who one upped Casey when she actually said 'thank you' after dropping Chuck off at his sister's apartment. He'd been about to ask her out when she offered a quick 'goodbye' and then sped off into the night. The next morning he tried to call Agent Sarah Walker, hoping she might consider joining him for a coffee but her number had been disconnected. He'd stopped by her hotel on his way in to work and found that she'd checked out the night before.

"Chuck?" the voice called again and when he raised his head up, he took note of the dark brown hair and wondered who was in need of his technical expertise now? He wondered if the woman was a friend of his sister's who had been sent here by Ellie as part of her seemingly endless string of 'fix-ups'.

"How can I help you?" he asked and then noticed the piercing blue eyes that stared back at him. "Agent Walker?" he asked, glad that he had been seated because he was sure that, if he'd been standing, he would have collapsed to his knees in shock. "How can I help you?" he added, finally getting his shock under control.

"I was hoping that you might be able to take a look at my phone" she answered, holding out her hand with a familiar looking phone cradled in her palm.

"Ah, Agent Walker, how I've missed your 'spy' humor" he said after glancing around to make sure that no one was within hearing range. "Look, I've had a really craptacular day and unless your phone really is broken, would you mind telling me why you're really here."

You're having a bad day, Chuck?"

"Yeah, I kinda am, so?…" he replied, going a little heavier on the snark than he really meant to. He just couldn't help it. His headache had just decided to kick it up a notch and he felt the tingle in his nose that told him to find a kleenex. Turning around, he reached for a box of tissues and just made it as he sneezed three times, rapidly and then paused before adding one more for good measure. After blowing his nose and tossing the sodden tissue into the almost overflowing wastebasket, he turned back around to find his surprise guest looking at him with concern in her eyes.

"Chuck, are you alright? You don't look so good"

"Why, thank you Agent Walker. In fact, I'm just peachy. I have a room mate who tends to sleep in the nude, far too often. That wouldn't be a problem if said room mate looked like you but, thanks to the luck that has followed me for the last six and a half years, my room mate looks like an Ewok that appears to be molting. Toady was also the day that the girl I'd been seeing, off and on for the last four months, decided that an uncertain future, back east, with her ex ,held more appeal than yours truly. And just to round things off, I got rained on, my boss treats me like a moron, I have a job that I hate, my sister keeps trying to set me up with her single friends and to put the cherry on the top of the icing on my reticular day, it now looks like I'm coming down with something. So, tell me, Agent Walker, why are you here?"

"Chuck, please call me Sarah. I'm so sorry that you're having a off day…"

"Off day? Off day?" he said with a sniffle. "Agent Walker, 'Red shirts' have an off day! Kenny had an off day every episode…I'm having an unbelievably shitty day and I really wish you'd tell me why you're here…in Burbank? In this store? Standing here in front of Chuck 'Lucky Man' Bartowski?"

Sarah cleared her throat as she struggled to figure what she needed to say next and, once again, Chuck was happy he was seated when she finally chose her answer. "I'm here to offer you a job…actually, I'm here on behalf of the CIA to offer you a job"

Chuck hurriedly looked around and when he took note of the surprising lack of customers, he turned back to the brunette standing just a couple of feet away and uncorked his sarcasm. "So, the same government that fourteen months ago, treated me like an idiot, upended my life and then, after I was no longer useful, simply disappeared without so much as a 'Thanks a lot, Chuck. Here's a little something for your time and headaches', is that the people your representing, Agent Walker? Because, if it is, I'll have to take a pass. I'm sorry if you had to take a break from your amazing 'spy' life and leave your amazing 'spy' friends and 'spy' boyfriends just to come out here to Burbank, a place that, as I recall, you couldn't leave fast enough last time. Just think, with my answer taking so little time to get, you can probably be home before anyone even has a chance to miss you" Chuck finally paused to take a breath, got to his feet and turned to leave. He felt a little guilty about being such an asshole but he figured that the shitty day was part of the reason for his uncharacteristic behavior. He'd taken two steps before he stopped and looked back over his shoulder. "I'm sorry. I really hope you have a nice flight back" he said before turning his head back and resuming his 'escape'. He had taken a couple of steps when he stumbled and then wondered why the floor seemed to be rushing up to meet him, sure that something was wrong. His last coherent thought was that he couldn't' believe how rude he'd been to Sarah and maybe he should apologize. He thought he heard someone yell his name with what sounded like concern in their voice but he couldn't be sure.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah Walker sat on the edge of Chuck's bed and leaned over to gently brush some curls out of his eyes. "I'm so sorry, Chuck" she spoke softly, "but we need you".

**A/N: **I'll add as I can. JT

Reviews and ideas or suggestions are always welcome.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **Hello to all of you …glad that you stuck around…I've been a little distracted lately…if you must, you can insert the word lazy in place of distracted…I don't promise anymore but I hope to have the next Chapter of BLDBAL up tonight…also considering trying my hand(no pun intended and any mental scarring due to horrible images is completely unintentional) at a M rated excerpt for BLDBAL…we all know Sarah's going to jump his bones and I think I might take a whack(insert previous apology here)at telling that story…if that holds any interest at all, let me know…I probably don't say it enough but I'm really very flattered by all of the reviews and I just hope that you continue to leave them(or start, if you've been waiting for an invitation)…I also have to say thanks to all of the writers here who constantly keep me entertained as they flex there bulging literary muscles(skills), making me feel like the proverbial 98 pound weakling who is desperately trying to wipe the sand from my eyes while the smile on my face gives away the enjoyment your stories bring me…thanks to all of you…now, on to the stuff…don't own Chuck or anything in the Chuckverse, not making money with this continuing display of doodling and still having fun. I say it every time but never fail to mean it…your reviews, good or bad, are the source of my desire to keep doing this and any ideas are always welcome. I may use them and forget to offer thanks and for that I'll apologize profusely…if it happens. Thanks for the nudge, Jim. JT

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 2**

Sarah's eyes snapped open and she was instantly alert, ready to face whatever had changed in the area she'd been 'watching' since the previous night. After giving the room a quick once over and finding nothing out of place, she turned her attention to the man who was occupying the bed she'd been sitting to next to for the last twelve hours. Pausing for a moment, she realized that what had alerted her was the change in Chuck's breathing which told her that he was about to wake up.

After taking a deep, cleansing breath, she slowly got to her feet and then went through a stretching routine, trying to banish the aches that were the direct result of spending the night in an uncomfortable plastic chair. Finishing up the stretch with her arms behind her back and her chest thrust out, she happened to look down and found Chuck staring at her. Dropping her hands and straightening back out, she offered a smile.

"Good morning, Chuck"

"Agent Walker" he answered as he slowly looked around the room. "So, I guess this is 'Uncle Sam's' way of drafting me?"

"What?" she answered, confused.

"I turned down your offer so in order to complete your assignment you tranqed me and brought me here, where ever 'here' is. What's next? Force the intersect up my nose and then throw me in a bunker somewhere?" he said, sounding like he wouldn't be at all surprised if this was just the latest thing that life had decided to throw his way.

"What? No Chuck, you're in Westside Medical. You fainted yesterday and I had the ambulance bring you her so that Ellie could check you out. I was worried about you…"

"So, you didn't tranq me?" he interrupted, an accusing tone to his voice.

"Tranq you? Chuck, why would I tranq you?"

"Oh, I don't know, Agent Walker. Maybe you were afraid that if I didn't jump at the chance to 'volunteer' to work with the government, if I turned you down, you would have failed your assignment and I think we both know how important your job is to you."

"Chuck, I would never…"

"Unless you were order to do it, right? He shot back and watched as a stunned Sarah Walker struggled to answer. "Agent Walker, would you mind finding a doctor for me? I'd really like to find out what's wrong with me and when I can go home" he finished and then closed his eyes, allowing himself to settle back onto the pillow.

"Um, ok? I'll go see if I can find Ellie" she replied before turning around and making a hasty retreat from the room, knowing she'd have to make a few phone calls and some decisions before she tried talking to Chuck again. 'First things first' she told herself as she went over the mental list of things she needed to do, find Ellie Bartowski and ask her some questions that had been worrying at her since she'd spoken to Chuck yesterday afternoon. Maybe the older woman might be able to help her understand why the sweet guy she'd met, all those months ago, was being so cold to her. She was loathe to admit it but the reception she'd received hurt her and she wasn't sure why.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

It had taken almost fifteen minutes for Sarah to locate Ellie, finally being directed to the doctors lounge. She paused outside the door, taking a deep, centering breath before she stepped into the 'lion's den'. She'd hoped that there would be several people inside who would serve a buffer between her and Chuck's sister but a quick look around the room dashed that hope when she found herself alone with the older woman.

"Hi Ellie. I'm glad I found you" Sarah said, trying to keep her tone light as she walked to the table where the brunette sat, going over some paperwork. She was a little surprised at the confused look that answered her greeting.

"I'm sorry, do I know you…Sarah? Sarah Walker, is that you?" the look of confusion on her face suddenly shifting to one of awareness as she connected some dots. "So, you're the brunette who sat with my little brother all night?"

"Yes, guilty as charged. How did you know?"

"When I talked to Devon this morning, he said that someone had spent the night, sleeping in a chair next to Chuck's bed. I thought it was Sam but it looks like I was wrong. I'm surprised that she's not here. I thought they'd been getting pretty close lately."

"I'm not sure but I believe I heard Chuck say something about the woman he'd been seeing, leaving unexpectedly" Sarah offered, curious to see Ellie's reaction to the news. Taking note of the brief look of sadness, she got the impression that the news hadn't been a big surprise and that maybe Ellie hadn't thought a whole lot of the woman.

"You talked to Chuck?"

"Well, yeah. I stopped by the Buymore yesterday. I was standing there when he passed out and then I insisted on riding with him after the paramedics loaded him into the ambulance. I was hoping that you'd be here but I guess that you'd just finished a forty-eight hour shift and had already gone home. Devon hovered while one of the on-calls check Chuck out and when he heard that there wasn't any immediate danger, he decided to let you get your sleep.

"Yeah, I already talked with Devon and, while I'm not happy that he didn't call me right away, I realize that he was right to let me sleep. Of course, I won't tell him that, at least not right away. I 'suffer' through a few foot massages before I 'forgive' him" she said with a smile. "I'm just about through with this paperwork and then I'm going to go check in on my little brother"

"Would it be alright if I tag along?" Sarah asked, secretly fearing that she'd be denied.

"Well, I guess so. Give me a few minutes. If you'd like, there's coffee over there" she said, gesturing vaguely behind her as she returned to her work. "I don't know how fresh it is but it's usually hot"

"Thank you, Ellie" Sarah said as she made her way to the counter where the coffee maker sat. Helping herself to a styrofoam cup, she poured a herself a cup-full and then walked back to the table and took a seat. After taking a sip and then grimacing, she looked up to find Ellie smiling at her.

"I said it was usually hot, I never said anything about it being good."

"Ellie, can I ask you a question?" Sarah said after forcing down another mouthful of the vile caffeine delivery system. When she got a nod from the woman seated across from her, she decided to just bite the bullet and ask the 'big' question. "Ellie, when I talked to Chuck yesterday, before he fainted, I got the impression that he was, um, unhappy? I realize that he wasn't feeling good but he didn't seem like the Chuck I met when I first came to Burbank."

"Yeah" Ellie replied after she set the down the pen that had been in her hand. "I hate to say it but, after you went back to your ex, he seemed to change. He started sliding back into the way he was right before you showed up. Meeting you seemed to bring him out of the funk he'd been in since Stanford and, well, once you left. I know it wasn't your fault but your leaving really seemed to do a number on him."

"I'm sorry" Sarah said, refusing to meet the other woman's eyes.

"Sarah, it's alright. Chuck said that you had to take a chance with your ex, that you wanted to try and see if you could save the relationship. I wanted to blame you but he wouldn't let me. He just kept insisting that it was his fault, that he just read way too much into it. I have to ask, why are you back here and what's up with the?" she asked, pointing a finger towards her hair, obviously curious about the change from the blonde she remembered.

"Well, uh, I thought it was time for a change. We tried to make it work but he couldn't seem to leave the women in the secretarial pool alone and I finally had enough. I had some vacation time saved up and I thought I'd come out here for a few weeks. Get away from DC and I thought it might be nice to see Chuck again, only, he didn't seem very happy to see me" Sarah said, keeping her eyes on the table because she was afraid that Ellie might see the lies in her eyes.

"I don't know what to tell you, Sarah. Why don't we go see how my little brother's doing and then I'll leave you to figure out what ever it is that you need to figure out, sound ok?"

"That sounds good, Ellie. I have to check up on something first so, how about I meet you there after I take care of this call?" Sarah answered, already planning ahead for the conversation with Graham and what she'd say to try and stall her boss. She knew that both Graham and Beckman were eager to get their hands on Chuck since it had been determined that the intersect didn't seem to work in anyone as well as it had in him.

"Ok, Sarah. I'll see you up there" Ellie said as she stood up and gathered all of the paperwork that had been sitting in front of her. Turning to leave, she paused and turned back to look at Sarah. She was about to say something and seeing that Sarah already had her phone to her ear, she simply shook her head, turned back around and walked away.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah had spent almost ten minutes on the phone, explaining to Director Graham that she hadn't been able to talk to Chuck yet but that she expected to within the hour. She listened patiently while she was reminded, in great length, about the disappointment that was Bryce Larkin and his intersect upload. She'd been surprised when General Beckman had joined the conversation, questioning Sarah's commitment to the mission and her willingness to do what ever was required to get the 'asset's' compliance. She'd wanted to correct the General, to remind her that the asset had a name but decided against that course of action, choosing to simply offer the requisite 'yes ma'ams' and 'yes sirs'. After promising an update on Chuck's health, she finished the call and pocketed her phone before heading to his room.

Sarah was lost in thought and when she finally approached Chuck's room, she paused at the doorway and listened in. Evidently Ellie hadn't beaten her there by much because she was just starting to go over the charts she'd retrieved from the foot of the bed. Trying to remain out of sight, she poked her head around the door frame to watch and listen in.

"Well, baby brother…"

"C'mon El. I'm old enough to vote and drink and even have sex"

"Yeah, yeah and ewww. Being old enough for those things doesn't mean you're not my baby brother so you'll just have to live with it. Now, it looks like you have the flu. I'm guessing that you didn't go and get that flu shot I told you to get, did you?"

"El, you know how I feel about needles" Chuck almost whined. "Is that why I passed out?"

"Chuck, you fainted"

"Aw, come on Ellie. Passed out sounds more masculine"

Ignoring him, Ellie continued, "And, it appears that you were really dehydrated and suffering from exhaustion. Now, you're going to be released and I'll take some time and take you home but first" she paused for dramatic effect before pulling a huge syringe from her jacket pocket and attaching a needle that looked to be at least three inches long, "one last shot."

"Holy crap, El! You can't be serious." Chuck said with a panicked voice as he began looking around the room, desperately searching for an exit besides the one his sister was currently blocking.

"Calm down Chuck. It's just a joke." Ellie said with a snort as she removed the needle from the syringe and then put everything back into her pocket. "I would never give you an injection using my turkey marinade injector"

"Oh, ha ha, Ellie. Very funny." Chuck said and then, when his sister moved to hang the chart back on the foot of the bed, he noticed that Sarah Walker was standing in the doorway with a smile on her face. "So, Sarah, you think that was funny?"

"Well, a little?" she offered and then tried to keep her smile from growing when she met Ellie's offered high five with a resounding slap.

"I'm going to go and get your paperwork taken care of, Chuck. Your clothes are in the bathroom and I'll be back to take you home as soon as I've arranged for someone to cover for me fro a little while" Ellie said from the doorway.

"Um, I could give him a ride" Sarah offered. "If it would help, that is".

"That would really be great, isn't that right, Chuck?" the older woman answered as she exchanged looks with her brother, letting him know that her mind had been made up…and so had his. "I'll see the two of you downstairs. I'll send someone up with a wheelchair so…'

"I'm perfectly able to walk, El."

"I'm sure you are but rules are rules. I'll see you downstairs. Oh, and Chuck?"

"Yes, bossy?"

"Three days off of work. No arguments" she stated, leaving no doubt that her orders where to be followed. Turning around, she was gone before Chuck could offer any resistance to her proclamation.

Sarah stepped to the foot of the bed and offered a small smile. "Would you like any help getting ready to go?"

"No thanks, Agent Walker. I've been successfully dressing my self for years now although my sister would probably argue that my fashion sense definitely needs help" Chuck answered as he slowly swung his legs over the side of the bed and got to his feet.

"Chuck, won't you please call me Sarah?"

"That depends. Are you here on a mission? Because your bosses told you to come to Burbank?"

"Well, technically, yes, but…"

"Then let's just leave it at Agent. I'll be dressed in a few minutes and then we can go since it appears that my sister had decided that you're going to be driving me home" Chuck said before stepping into the bathroom and pulling the door shut behind him.

"Great" Sarah mumbled to herself as she pulled her phone from her pocket and placed a call as she picked up Chuck's medical charts and looked them over. Once she heard the voice on the other end of the call announce that she'd reached Sanfordson Shipping, she gave her authorization code and requested a pool car be left for her at the hospital with the keys in their customary place. She'd been told the tag number and just as she ended the call, Chuck emerged from the bathroom and made his way towards the door.

"Checking in with the bosses? Letting them know that I'm alive?"

"No, I wasn't checking in" Sarah replied, happy that she wasn't lying. "Just making sure that I had transportation so I could get you home. Wouldn't want to disappoint Ellie"

"Yeah, you're right about that" he replied and then was stopped at the door by a stern faced nurse who had a wheelchair in her hands. "Well, looks like my rides here. Is this really necessary?"

"Why no, Mr. Bartowski. Neither are the seven immunization shots that your sister said I should give you if you made any fuss about the wheelchair"

"Hey look , Sarah, my favorite nurse brought a wheelchair" he said as he quickly sat down and lifted his feet so the nurse could swing the foot rests into position. Once he was situated to the nurse's liking, they headed towards the elevator, the smiling agent bringing up the rear.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

After finding a parking space and pulling in, Sarah shut off the engine and was out of the car before Chuck could say a word. By the time he had the passenger door open and was starting to climb out, his temporary chauffer was already waiting for him to get the rest of the way out of the car, standing close with the bag containing his prescriptions held tightly in her hand. Once he'd managed to extricate himself from the tiny little FORD pos that had been left for Sarah at the hospital, he closed the door and held a hand out, hoping Sarah would simply hand over his medicine and then leave.

"Chuck, I have to say that I'm getting mixed signals here. You don't say a word on the ride here and now you want to hold hands while I escort you to your place?"

"No, Agent Walker. I just wanted you to give me my prescriptions so I can go to my room and lay down. I wouldn't want you to waste any of your valuable time. I'm sure you have more important things to do."

No Chuck, I don't have anything more important to do. In fact, you're the most important thing I have to do here in Burbank…uh, I didn't mean that I had to do you…"

"Unless ordered, right?" Chuck said and then wondered why he was suddenly seeing stars. Raising his hand to the side of his face, he tenderly touched the area that was sending an unbelievable amount of pain signals to his brain. He allowed himself to lean back against the car, unsure if he was going to have to sit down rather suddenly do to the way his knees were wobbling.

"I'm so sorry, Chuck" Sarah said , looking mortified about what she'd just done. She stepped closer and when she saw him flinch back, she froze. "Please, Chuck, I'm so sorry I hit you"

"It's ok, Sarah. That was a pretty shitty thing to say. Maybe I should just take my medicine and go"

When Chuck dropped his hand from the side of his face, Sarah was shocked to see the deep red imprint of her hand, not realizing until just then just how hard she'd hit him. "Oh no you don't, Chuck Bartowski. Your sister gave me specific instructions and until you've had some soup and gone to bed, I'm not leaving you alone, understand me?"

Shaking his head in resignation, Chuck leaned forward again and started to make his way towards Casa Bartowski. He knew he wouldn't ignore a command from his sister and he really couldn't expect someone else to poke that bear with a stick. He started to smile at the mental picture of Sarah poking at Ellie with a stick and had to stop when the movement of the muscles required to smile reminded him that he'd just been slapped, hard.

Once through the front door, he felt a hand on his back, pushing him in the direction of his room. "Sarah I…" he started but was cut off before he could say anything else.

"Chuck, you go get ready for bed while I make you some soup."

"Agent Walker, you burned corndogs, that were on a timer" he replied with a smirk.

"That may be true but I've never burned soup. Go get ready and I'll meet you in the kitchen" she answered, giving him a playful shove towards his room. Watching him walk away, she caught herself staring and after a quick head shake, she made her way to the kitchen and started digging through the cabinets, looking for the ingredients to make really tasty soup…namely, the red and white cans she was very familiar with from her own kitchen back in DC.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah was putting the finishing touches on some sandwiches when she happened to glance at her watch and realize that it had been almost fifteen minutes and Chuck hadn't reappeared. Deciding to save Chuck the trip, she loaded a tray with two bowls of soup, a couple of sandwiches, napkins and silverware. Telling herself that she'd come back once she'd found out what Chuck wanted to drink, she made her way to his room and found him laying on his bed, fully clothed and fast asleep.

Putting the tray down on his desk, she walked to the edge of the bed and gently sat down. Reaching out a hand, she brushed an errant curl off of his forehead and then lightly traced the fading hand print on the side of his face. Chuck reached a hand up and captured her fingertips and pulled them to his lips. Sarah couldn't believe it when Chuck moaned out the name of an Agent who'd been sent to watch over him and couldn't believe just how much it bothered her to hear that name escape his lips.

"Sam"

**A/N: **Come back next time, y'all, ya hear? Oh yeah, and please review.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **Hello to all…back again…more scribbles for those who choose to read 'em…as I've said before, sorry for the delay between updates…life and all that stuff…you know…hope to get a new MGP out soon and some more swimmer and TRFW if I'm lucky…also toying with another 'spin-off', this time from BLDBAL…how about mamma bear with the Intersect…double the Bartowskis, double the fun?…thoughts?…yea, another blatant attempt to encourage your reviews(or a PM if you're shy)…anybody heard from Prince Boo Boo?…remember, if you get a photo of him in his costume, licking Katy Perry's toes, it could be worth a fortune…and not just to him…just remembered…I don't own Chuck or anything in the whole 'Chuckverse'…I'm making surprisingly little money…ok, ok…no money, doing this writing thing…and, wowsie wowsie woo woo, almost a year and still beta-free…who'd ah thunk it…yes, I've realized that the fun is still there so, thanks Jim. JT

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 3**

Agent Sarah Walker jolted awake when she felt the light touch on her shoulder. Instantly alert, she whipped her head to her left and found Ellie Bartowski staring down at her. Acknowledging her silent head nod, she got to her feet and followed the older woman from the room, stretching her aching back as she went. Stepping into the hallway, she waited and, after Ellie silently closed the door, followed her into the kitchen.

"So, Sarah" Ellie said as she took the first steps to brew a pot of coffee, "can I ask why you're here?"

"Well, I just wanted to make sure Chuck was ok. When we got here yesterday afternoon, I told Chuck I was going to make him some lunch and when I took some soup into him, he'd fallen asleep. I , uh, I got him undressed and tucked him in. After I cleaned up the mess I'd made in the kitchen, I went back into his room to check him and then I just figured I'd sit down for a few minutes and then I just nodded off."

"And you slept in that chair for fourteen hours?" Ellie asked, a look of disbelief on her face.

"Not the entire fourteen hours, no. I checked on him every couple of hours, just making sure that he was doing alright. He's still running a fever and I brought him some ice water a couple of times" Sarah answered, leaving out the phone call she'd made to her boss, updating the powers that be on Chuck's condition. The call had upset her when the Director had inquired if she'd made any headway in convincing him to accept their 'job offer', hinting at the possibility that they might have to use stronger methods to insure his acceptance of their 'offer'.

"Coffee, Sarah?" Ellie asked, her voice snapping Sarah back to the present.

"Yes, please"

"So, Sarah, first day back in Burbank and you've already got my brother naked…"

"I, uh, he was wearing boxers and, I ,uh…"

"Sarah, I was just joking" Ellie said with a laugh as she filled the coffee cup sitting in front of her. "I'll make sure that I tell Chuck that you sat with him when he wakes up."

"Would it be ok if I checked on him later this afternoon?" Sarah asked, realizing that her initial plan to ask Ellie about staying so she could watch over Chuck might have seemed a little strange. She'd been surprised that Chuck's sister hadn't been more curious about her spending the night at his bedside…and undressing him. Hell, if she was honest with herself, she wasn't sure why she'd done it and, stranger yet, why she'd gotten such a thrill when she'd taken a good look at him laying there in his boxers. She'd expected him to be gangly and had caught her breath when she'd noticed the excellently toned physique that his baggy clothing had hidden so effectively. She felt herself begin to blush when she remembered how much she'd wanted to divest him of the boxers he'd been wearing, coming perilously close to going for the 'full Bartowski' and somehow stopping herself when she found her fingers reaching for the waistband of his shorts.

"Earth to Sarah…hello, earth to Sarah" Ellie said as she waved a hand in front of her eyes. When she'd noticed the odd look in the blonde's eyes and the faint blush that was climbing her cheeks she'd wanted to know what she'd been thinking about but before she had the chance to ask, Sarah had gotten to her feet and taken her now empty coffee cup to the kitchen sink.

"Well, uh, thanks for the coffee, Ellie. I'm going to go back to my hotel now. Would it be alright if I checked in on Chuck this afternoon?" Sarah said as she made her way to the apartments front door.

"Yeah, that would be fine" Ellie answered when Sarah paused at the door and looked back at her. "I'm going to take Chuck's phone into my room so those idiots at the Buymore don't call and bother him while I'm asleep. Why don't you give me a call this afternoon? Do you still have his number?"

"Yes, yes I do. I'll call you later" Sarah said as she opened the door and stepped out. "Thanks for the coffee, Ellie. I'll call you later" she finished before pulling the door closed behind her.

"Ok" Ellie said to the now closed door, wondering what had gotten into Sarah that had made her act so peculiarly. Promising herself to ask her the next time she spoke to her, she got up from the table and, after washing out the two coffee cups, went to check on her brother. Stopping at her room, she'd sat down on the edge of the bed, planning on taking off her shoes. Once her feet were free from their confinement, she told herself that it would be alright to lay back for a couple of minutes before she went on check on Chuck.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah Walker finished drying her hair and after pulling it into a quick ponytail, she picked up her phone and hit the speed dial and waited, wondering why she was hoping that the person who answered the phone would be Chuck Bartowski and not his sister. After five rings, Sarah was beginning to worry and just as she was about to hang up, Ellie's voice came through the speaker.

"Sarah?" Ellie asked, sounding tired and a little frazzled.

"Hi Ellie. I just wanted to check and see how Chuck was doing. Would it be alright if I stopped by the apartment later, just to see how he's doing?"

"Sarah, uh, I had to bring Chuck back to the hospital…"

"Ellie, what happened? Is he alright?" Sarah asked, trying to keep her voice calm.

"I, uh, they're rushing him into surgery right now…"

"Surgery? Ellie, what happened? Why is he going into surgery?" Sarah asked, no longer able to hide the panic she was suddenly feeling.

"Sarah, I have to go. I've got your number here and I'll call you as soon as I know something…promise"

"Ellie? Ellie?" Sarah asked before realizing that she was speaking to a dial tone. While she was staring at her phone and thinking about hitting the redial, the display flashed to life, indicating an incoming call from her boss. "Just great" she mumbled to herself before hitting the connect icon. "Walker, secure"

"Agent Walker, would you care to explain why the asset is in the hospital…again?"

"Pardon me, sir? I just found out that Chu…Mr. Bartowski was being rushed into surgery. How did you.."

"Agent Walker, the asset has been under observation since Dr. Zarnow proclaimed him free of the intersect. In fact, his last 'handler' was withdrawn the same day that you were ordered to Burbank. Of course, Mr. Bartowski was unaware of our 'interest' in his well being. You were sent in because our analysts believe he had formed some sort of attachment to you when you were first assigned to him and that Agent Wilson would be unable to forge the same type of 'bond' you had achieved. It was believed that you represented the best chance of getting him to accept our 'offer'. Do you disagree with this?"

"I honestly don't know, sir" Sarah answered as she grabbed her purse and hurriedly left her hotel room, "but I'm leaving now for the hospital to find out Chu…Mr. Bartowski's

condition. I will update you as soon as I know anything."

"Agent Walker, perhaps I didn't make myself clear…we already have reports from medical personal on the scene. We don't need you to tell us what we already know! We need you to convince Mr. Bartowski that his country needs him to come back to work for us."

"Director Graham, Chuck Bartowski never agreed to the intersect the first time…"

"Agent Walker, let me try once again to explain your job to you. You are to use any means necessary, and I do mean any means necessary to get Mr. Bartowski to volunteer for this. We need his unique abilities and if he won't join us willingly, we'll have to make different arrangements. Trust me, Agent Walker, we need him and he will come to work for us, one way or another. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes sir. Very clear. I will report in within the hour with an update…"

"Agent Walker, I really do not like repeating myself so listen very closely. I already have up to the minute updates on Mr. Bartowski's condition. All I want to hear from you is that you have gained the asset's co-operation…by whatever means you have to employ. Have I made myself understood? Because, if you have trouble with your assignment, we will re-assign you and go with the analysts second recommendation which involves less carrot and more stick. Do you understand?"

"Yes sir" Sarah replied and realized that she was talking to a dial tone. After a quick glance at the display on her cel-phone, she slid it into her purse as she exited the elevator, making her way towards the hotel's parking garage and her beloved Porsche.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah had decided to start her search for Ellie with the emergency room. The nurse on duty at the check in desk had informed her that Dr. Bartowski was currently unavailable and that, if she wanted, she was welcome to take a seat and wait. Realizing that flashing her CIA credentials would get back to Ellie and since she really didn't want to have to explain anything to the older woman, she chose, instead, to follow the nurse's advice and take a seat and wait.

After making herself comfortable, she found herself thinking about the last time she'd spent time in a hospital. Reaching her hand to the back of her shoulder, she felt the faint outline of the scar that was the physical reminder of her last visit to a hospital. As her fingertips traced the outline of the scar, she remembered the events that lead up to the gunshot wound that left the reminder.

Almost twelve months ago, she'd been called into Director Graham's office and had been shocked to find Bryce Larkin sitting in one of the chairs facing the Director, looking a lot less dead than she'd been lead to believe. Moving quickly to hide the surprise that she was sure was evident on her face, she crossed the office and took the other empty seat in front of the desk.

"Director, I was under the impression that Agent Larkin was killed…while committing an act of treason that resulted in the destruction of the Intersect. May I be so bold as to ask for an explanation?"

"Certainly, Agent Walker. Agent Larkin was acting under my direct orders when he destroyed the original Intersect" Director Graham said and then glared at Bryce before continuing, "however, his decision to download a copy of the Intersect and then send it to Charles Bartowski was completely his own choice. We had hoped that his actions that lead to the destruction of the Intersect would allow him to infiltrate a rogue intelligence agency, known as Fulcrum, with the hope of bringing the group down from the inside. Agent Casey wasn't supposed to catch Mr. Larkin and the resulting gunshot wound was definitely not part of the plan. You know most of what happened afterwards except for Mr. Larkin's recovery, which, you are now aware of. Now, it's time to talk about your new assignment. First, I have to as if you have any problem working with Agent Larkin again?"

"No sir" she remembered answering even though she wasn't sure she really wanted to get close to the man who'd come so close to ruining Chuck's life…again. Glancing to her side, she took note of the self-confidant smile that was on Bryce's face, obviously not at all surprised that she'd admitted to being willing to work with him again. "What exactly is the mission, sir?"

"Agent Larkin is going to download the new Intersect and then the two of you are going to lead the attack against Fulcrum."

"The new Intersect, sir?"

"Yes, Agent Walker. We already had the new Intersect up and running when Agent Larkin destroyed the original. The original plan, before the gunshot wound and the unfortunate business with Mr. Bartowski, is now back in play, with a few adjustments."

"When do we get started, sir?" Sarah asked, wondering what the hell was actually going on.

"Agent Larkin will undergo the upload tomorrow and, assuming that every thing goes as planned, the two of you will have a briefing with your support team the following day. After that, you will both leave for New York to get started with the mission. If you have any questions, Agent Walker, you can ask Agent Larkin. I'll see both of you tomorrow. Have a nice day" Director Graham finished, making it clear that the meeting was over and they had been dismissed.

Getting to her feet, Sarah followed Bryce out of the office and towards the elevator. She rode down in silence and barely remembered saying yes to Bryce's dinner invitation. The rest of the afternoon was a blur and when Bryce showed up at her place with a pizza and a bottle of wine, she had wanted to ask what he was doing there until she recalled accepting his dinner invitation earlier in the day. She ate a couple pieces of pizza and drank several glasses of wine while making polite conversation with Bryce, wondering the whole time how a certain curly headed nerd was doing and if she should ignore the nearly over-powering urge she had to call him.

She remembered waking up the next morning and finding she wasn't alone in her own bed. Not needing to look to her side to know who'd spent the night, she crawled out of bed and, after turning the water as hot as she could stand, tried to wash away the strange feeling of guilt that had been clinging to her ever since she'd given into Bryce's charm and allowed him to invite himself into her bed. Once she'd finished, she stepped out of her shower and found Bryce in her bathroom, using her spare toothbrush. Resisting the urge to snatch the toothbrush from his hand and then kick him out of her apartment, she forced herself to smile when Bryce congratulated himself on the amazing night they'd shared. 'Just like old times' he'd said, smiling in her direction while he continued to watch himself in the small circle of the mirror that he'd wiped the condensation off of.

Later that day Bryce underwent the upload procedure and became the CIA's first official Intersect host. After recovering from the upload, Dr. Zarnow had given him the same test that Chuck had gone through and he passed although the doctor had mentioned that Bryce's responses hadn't been as accurate and his response time had been slower. Sarah hadn't been surprised that Bryce hadn't done as well as Chuck because, if she was honest with herself, she continued to find that Bryce failed any time she compared him to the man she'd only known for such a short time. In less than a month with him, she'd found herself caring for Chuck Bartowski more than she believed was possible and that was a large part of the reason she'd fled, without saying goodbye, when Director Graham had given her a new mission.

After that one night, Sarah had told Bryce that it would never happen again, that it couldn't. He'd asked why but didn't push things when she'd simply told him to drop it, that she would work with him but they would never return to the levels of intimacy they once shared. She'd almost told him that it was because she felt closer to the man he'd betrayed than she did to him but chose to keep that secret, fearing that Bryce's ego wouldn't take that knowledge well.

The partnership seemed to work fine and their team was making inroads in their battle against Fulcrum despite Bryce's increasingly ineffective access to and use of the Intersect. As time went by, Bryce had more and more difficulty being able to call on the knowledge stored in his brain and that failure put the team into danger with increasing frequency. Sarah had, at first, tried to get Bryce to admit the problem and allowed him to tell her that it was just a glitch and everything would be back to normal soon. When things continued to deteriorate, Sarah went to the director with her concerns and after he'd spoken with Bryce, he'd come back to her and asked her if it wasn't her feelings for her partner that weren't being returned that prompted her report. It took all of her will power to remain civil with her boss as she asked for a re-assignment and when that was turned down, it took even more will power to keep her from beating the shit out of Bryce the next time she saw him.

The final straw in their partnership had been their last mission almost six weeks before she'd returned to Burbank. Bryce had organized a raid on a Fulcrum base that he claimed to have identified through information he'd gleaned from his latest flashes. When the team had launched their attack, they'd been met with a bunch of Russian mobsters and their hired muscle who had absolutely nothing to do with Fulcrum. The gun fight had been devastatingly one-sided and when the smoke finally cleared, five members of Team Intersect were dead, seven more had gunshot wounds, including herself, and the only member without a scratch was Bryce Larkin who'd miraculously managed to avoid the fighting by following a last minute flash that had lead him away from the area, chasing a high level Fulcrum operative that only he had seen.

Sarah had caught three rounds during the siege, one to the thigh, one to the calf and one that caught her in the shoulder. None of them had been life threatening and, thanks to the fact that the CIA have the best plastic surgeons in the nation at the fingertips, none of them left a large amount of scar tissue. The shot to the shoulder had been the worst and Sarah could still trace the faint outline of the scar and often caught herself doing it whenever she thought back to what had happened.

Director Graham had come as close to an apology as Sarah had ever heard of when he'd come to visit her in her hospital room and thanked her for her hard work on Team Intersect. He then told her that her earlier report, which he'd chosen to ignore, when combined with the reports from the rest of the surviving members of Team Intersect left him convinced that Agent Larkin might not be the amazingly effective human intersect that Bryce considered himself to be. Sarah had snorted at Graham's admission and moved quickly to cover up her action by pretending to have a coughing attack. Her boss had given her a brief glare before going on to tell her that Agent Larkin was, at least for the time being, 'benched' and that Sarah would get her re-assignment…if she still wanted it.

Sarah had been days away from returning to active duty when she'd been approached about returning to Burbank and offering the only person who seemed to be able to make the Intersect work, Charles Irving Bartowski, the opportunity to come back to work for the United States Government. When she appeared to hesitate before answering, Director Graham had told her to take twenty-four hours to think about it and then to inform him of her decision.. If she'd answered as her heart told her to, the Director wouldn't have had to wait twenty-four seconds but Sarah knew she had to think the offer through even though she was pretty sure that her heart would end up talking her into it.

Sitting at her desk in her apartment, Sarah had tried to be logical and even went as far as beginning a pro and con list. At one point she'd logged on to the her CIA account and started doing a little digging. She'd found out that Chuck had been 'watched' over since she'd left and she'd read the reports from his unseen handlers about his life after she'd run away. She also gave serious consideration to kicking Bryce's balls up into his throat when she discovered that he'd been in contact with Chuck. She thought it strangely admirable, his attempt to get Chuck to forgive him for the way he'd treated him, making it obvious to her that Bryce really had thought of his old room mate as a real friend. What set her off and very nearly cost Bryce any possible future at procreating, was Sarah's discovery of Bryce's e-mails to Chuck telling him all about his amazing spy partner, slash girlfriend, who found him irresistible, both out of bed and, and even more so, in. She could've lived with Bryce's ego and delusions but he'd also named her and included pictures of them together. The pictures were taken during a week in the two of them had spent in Cancun, nearly two years before, but Chuck had no way of knowing that and Sarah couldn't believe how much the possibility of Chuck thinking she'd left him, to return to Bryce, hurt her. That fear, plus an overwhelming need to set the record straight and maybe, if she could find the courage, tell him how much she'd missed him and how often he'd figured into her thoughts, were the real reasons that she'd accepted the assignment that had lead to her sitting in an uncomfortable chair, in a hospital waiting room, in Burbank, California.

Agent Sarah Walker was so lost in thought that it had taken Ellie Bartowski three tries to get her attention. When she finally noticed Chuck's sister standing in front of her, she leapt to her feet, ignoring the aching muscles, eager and, at the same time, dreading to hear what Dr. Ellie Bartowski had to tell her about the man whose grip on her heart had pulled her across the country on the thin hope that he might just care enough about her to listen to what she had to say.

"Ellie, I'm so glad to see you. How is he? What Happened? Is he going to be alright? Can I see him, please" Sarah said in a rush, her hands clasped in front of her as she waited for an answer…any answer.

"Sarah" Ellie replied, stepping forward and grabbing Sarah's hands with her own in an attempt to calm the concern she saw in the blonde's eyes. "He's going to be fine. He broke his arm and needed fifteen stitches to close a cut above his eye but he's going to be just fine. It looks like he fainted again and when he fell in the bathroom, his forehead caught the edge of the tub. He's very lucky he didn't do more damage…hell, we're lucky he didn't kill himself with a blow to the head like that."

"He fainted, again? I thought he was getting better? How did this happen? I should've stayed. I might have been able to prevent it if I'd stayed. I should've…"

"Sarah, calm down. He was improving. I think he was just dehydrated and weak and when he got up to go to the bathroom, he just overdid it and that's why he fainted. There was nothing would've done. He was in the bathroom, Sarah. I know my brother and unless there's something I don't know, you wouldn't have been in there with him, even if you had stayed. It was an accident and there's nothing we could've done. I was there and I couldn't have prevented it. Luckily I'd just gotten up from a nap. I was in the kitchen when I heard the noise and I was with him in seconds. Believe me when I tell you, there is nothing anyone could have done. Now, stop trying to blame yourself. He's going to be fine…well, except for the broken arm and the cut. He will get better, I promise you. Now, would you like me to take you up to his room so you can check on him yourself?"

"Yes please, Ellie" Sarah answered while she used one of her hands to brush something away from her cheek while her other hand held tightly to the other woman as she lead her through the hallways. After a brief elevator ride and another stretch of hallway, Sarah found herself standing in a doorway, staring at a curly headed man who appeared to be asleep. Dropping Ellie's hand, she made her way to the far side of the hospital bed and stood there, staring down at the man who had such an unexplainable hold on her. Bending closer, she gently brushed some wayward curls from his forehead and then, not knowing why, she bent even closer and placed a gentle kiss on the area that had been covered by the curls. Using a free hand, she wiped something from her cheek…again. Looking up, she realized that Ellie was watching her with a confused look on her face but when she made eye contact, the brunette simply smiled a knowing smile and then turned to leave, pausing long enough to tell her that she'd be back to check on him later and that she was welcome to stay as long as she wanted.

Agent Sarah Walker watched Ellie Bartowski walk away and then she turned her attention back to the bed and the man asleep in it. Casting about, she found a chair and pulled it to the side of the bed and after placing another gentle kiss on Chuck's forehead, she sat down to wait. Reaching out, she took his hand in hers and softly pulled it towards her. Using her free hand, she repeated an action that she seemed to find herself doing more and more when she wiped something from her cheek. Glancing down, she noticed the moisture on her palm and wondered what the hell she had to keep wiping away. She smiled sadly to herself because she knew what it was…she just wasn't sure why it was.

**A/N:2 **Thanks for reading. Hope you liked it. And thanks, in advance, for your time spent reviewing. Now, where did I leave those damn tissues…no, not for that…I'm just planning on getting a jump on my holiday wrapping…really! JT


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **Been a while, I know…the flu kicked my ass…plus, other bits of life conspired to eat my time…hope you like this one…hopefully(since it's nearly done) 'MGP Says I Do Just In Time' should be next…as usual I'll be pleading for your precious time in the form of reviews…remember, good or bad doesn't matter, just be honest…that's all I ever ask for…oh, by the way, if any of you are planning to see Roland Emmerich's new film? Don't!…what the hell happened?…I see the names Emmerich and Shakespeare and what do I expect?…a time traveling Will with his pet, mutant, fire breathing dinosaur, racing against time to save the world from impending doom…and what do I get…well, certainly not that…no dinosaurs, no ice age, no exploding planet…what the fuck?…how will I ever be able to trust Roland again?…on to other matters…I find that I'm still lacking when it comes to Chuck ownership and, surprise, surprise, I'm still not making anything doing this…ah well…maybe I can sell the whole 'time traveling William Shakespeare and his pet dinosaur' idea to someone…any takers?…you can just PM me…we'll talk…once again, sorry for the delay but I'm still having fun…thanks for the nudge, Jim….. JT

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 4**

Chuck Bartowski awoke with a start, the sudden crash back to reality leaving him confused as he blinked his eyes before slowly taking in his surroundings. The stark white walls and the sharp tang to the air telling him that he was in a hospital room…again. Looking towards the foot of the bed, the thing that caught his attention was the mop of brunette hair that was pooled over the lower half of his left arm and the odd sensations that were assaulting his left hand. After his head had cleared, he began trying to list all of the odd feelings that were centered on his hand.

Promising himself that he could always panic later, he decided to ignore the throbbing pain that seemed to be centered above his right eye and list what was happening with his hand, closing his eyes and starting a mental list.

'Alright, the weight on my hand is obviously someone's head. Check. The regularly spaced blasts of warm air mean that the body attached to the head is alive so…no zombie to add more excitement to the list of fun my life has become lately, lucky me. Check. Last but not least' he told himself, 'the wet feeling means that whoever isn't a zombie is drooling on my hand.'

Deciding to put off solving the mystery of who was sleeping on his hand, he shifted his attention to his right hand and lifted it so that he could investigate the source of the pain that seemed to be centered in his forehead, just above his right eye. As soon as he moved his hand he found that a great weight seemed to be holding his hand to the bed. Shifting his gaze from his left side, he found that his right arm was wrapped in a light blue cast the extended from mid-palm to the middle of his upper arm. Concentrating, he managed to lift his arm almost six inches off of the bed and watched as his fingers followed his commands and wiggled. Happy to find that he still had motor control, he allowed his arm to drop back against his chest, giving up his plan to check out the stiffness above his right eye.

Noticing some movement near his left hand, he watched as the brunette mop slowly raised itself from it place atop his hand and he couldn't help the quick breath he took when he recognized the piercing blue eyes that looked up at him. He almost smiled when he watched as Agent Sarah Walker quickly moved to wipe away the drool that was working it's way down her chin. The sudden blush that colored her cheeks finally caused him to smile and the quick, sharp pain above his eyes told him that smiling was something to be avoided…at least for now.

"Agent Walker, why is it that we seem to keep meeting in hospitals…at least since you came back to Burbank?" Chuck asked while he watched the woman sitting at his side pull her hair back into a quick pony tail, using the hair tie around her wrist to secure it. "So, slapping me wasn't enough? Had to break my arm?" he added, lifting his right arm and slowly moving it towards his forehead where his fingers brushed against a large bandage. "And put a large knot on my forehead?"

"What?…Chuck, I would never…" Sarah blurted out, ready to beg him to allow her to explain what had happened when she caught the barely noticeable twinkle in his eyes and stopped talking abruptly, her mouth hanging open as she struggled to figure out what she should say next.

"That's good to know, Agent Walker. Now, could you answer a few questions for me? Like, what happened? How bad is it and, finally, why were you drooling on my hand?"

Before Sarah could offer answers to Chuck's questions, the door to the room swung open and Dr. Eleanor Bartowski breezed in, glancing at the chart in her hands as she moved to the right side of the bed. Bending over, she gently peeled back the bandage on her brother's forehead and, obviously not finding anything wrong, softly pushed the dressing back into place.

"Ellie?"

"You fainted, little brother, and when you fell, you managed to break your arm and give yourself a very nasty cut above your eye. Luckily, your head is really thick so you didn't give yourself any brain damage."

"How bad is the cut, El?" Chuck asked as he brought his left hand to his forehead and touched the bandage there.

"Fifteen stitches, Chuck. I know the surgeon who did the work and I'm sure that you won't have much of a scar."

"What? All those stitches and I'm not going to have a really cool scar? "

"I'm so sorry Chuck" Ellie replied, making no effort to hide the sarcasm. "I tried to get him to give you a lightning bolt shaped scar…"

"Very funny. Chuck Potter, the nerd who lived" Chuck answered with a snort. "What about my arm?"

"You'll be in a cast for about six weeks and then everything should be back to normal"

"Ok. So, I fainted again? Any idea why?"

"I can't give you a specific reason, Chuck. You were really dehydrated and hadn't completely fought off whatever bug you'd picked up so, I guess, you were just really weak and when you went into the bathroom, it all just caught up with you. I'm just glad that you didn't do any more damage than you did" Ellie said before glancing back at the chart in her hands. "You can go home a little later but you're going to need some help…at least for the first few days, until you get used to doing things without the full use of your right arm."

"I could help you, if you'd like" Sarah offered, speaking for the first time since Chuck's sister had come into the room.

"You don't have to waste any of your valuable time. I'm sure there are things that you'd much rather be doing." Chuck said, looking briefly towards Sarah before turning back towards his sister. "So, how soon can I get out of here, El?"

Noticing the flash of hurt that crossed Sarah's face when Chuck all but dismissed her, Ellie made a snap decision to interfere in her little brother's life, something that she tried to avoid…whenever she could.

"Sarah, Devon and I have to work late so would you mind giving my little brother a ride home? And, if it's not too much trouble, could you stop by the pharmacy and get his prescriptions filled?"

"Ellie, I…" Chuck started to object before Sarah quickly got to her feet and reached a hand across the bed.

"I'd be happy to, Ellie. In fact, if you have the prescriptions handy, I could go right now and get them filled while Chuck's waiting to get signed out" Sarah offered, her outstretched hand suddenly filled with several pieces of paper that Ellie had pulled from her pocket.

"You really don't have to do that" Chuck said as he reached for the papers that Sarah was now holding, only to realize that his right hand wasn't in the best working order. Wincing and taking a quick breath, he let his arm drop back down and watched as his sister's new helper grabbed her purse and scampered out of the room, offering a quick 'be back soon' over her shoulder before disappearing into the hallway.

Ignoring his glare, Ellie smiled before turning to leave. Pausing at the door, she turned back. "I'll get the paperwork started and by the time Sarah gets back, you'll be ready to go" his sister said before turning again and leaving.

"Hey. What about what I want?" Chuck said to a now empty room. "Doesn't anyone care about what I want?" he mumbled to himself, wondering what his sister was up to since he seemed to remember her cursing Sarah Walker when she'd first disappeared from his life almost fourteen months before.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

"Ready to go, Chuck?" Sarah Walker asked from the doorway as she pushed an empty wheelchair into the room.

"Do I really have a choice?" Chuck asked, making no attempt to temper the snarky tone of his voice.

"Of course you have a choice, Chuck. If you really don't want my help, I'll leave" Sarah offered, the small smile on her face disappearing quickly. When Chuck didn't answer right away, she pushed the wheel chair into the room and after positioning it next to the bed, released her hold on the handles and reached into her purse, pulling out a small back that rattled when she placed it on the bed. "Here's your prescriptions, Chuck" she said and then slowly turned and stepped towards the door.

"Agent Walker…Sarah…I'm sorry for being such a jerk. I really could use some help…if you don't mind" Chuck said, wondering if the agent was playing him or if she was actually trying to be nice. When saw her turn back to him, he was surprised to see the what looked liked gratitude in her eyes…gratitude and something else he couldn't put a name to.

"I don't mind at all" Sarah replied, turning back and making her way to the side of the bed. "Has your sister taken care of all of the paperwork?" she asked as she moved the small paper bag and then gently took a seat on the bed's edge. Reaching out a hand, she tentatively placed on the blue fiberglass that encased his arm, her fingers lightly brushing against his thumb where it jutted out from his cast.

"Yeah, she just dropped it off before you got here. I was just about to see if I can get into some clothes" he responded, a slight blush climbing up his neck.

"Can I help with anything?" Sarah asked before glancing over at the pile of clothes that were sitting on the chair next to the bathroom door and then looking back at Chuck.

"Uh…no…uh, I think I should try getting myself dressed" he replied and couldn't help noticing the slight smirk on Sarah's face.

"Ok, Chuck, but if you need anything, just call and I'll be right there to do what I can…to help" she said as she got to her feet and stepped away from the bed, watching as her former asset slowly swung his legs over the side of the bed and, after getting his feet under him, made his way to the bathroom. She watched as he bent over and gathered up the clothes that his sister had brought in for him, a smile on her face. "Some things never change" she mumbled and was surprised when the curly haired nerd turned around with a questioning look on his face.

"What never changes, Agent Walker?"

'Hospital gowns that tie in the back' she told herself with a silent growl. "Hospitals insisting on wheelchairs for leaving patients" she answered, giving the chair in front of her a soft tap with her toe.

"Oh, ok" he responded before stepping into the bathroom and pulling the door behind him.

Sarah sat back down on the edge of the bed and told herself that the only reason she kept stealing looks through the slightly open bathroom door was to make sure that Chuck didn't fall and hurt himself…again. The sound of someone clearing their throat caught Sarah's attention and she tried to slowly swivel her head so it wouldn't appear as if she'd been trying to get a good look at Chuck as he changed but as soon as she saw Ellie's face, she knew she'd been busted.

"I was just keeping an eye on Chuck, you know, in case he fell…again" she offered, hoping that she would be able to keep the blush from giving away her true intentions.

"Oh really?" the older Bartowski asked, one of her eyebrows lifted much higher than the other. "And is everything ok?"

"Oh yes, everything is just fine" Sarah answered as she fought the nearly overwhelming urge to steal one more look.

"Well, that's great news. Now, when you get my baby brother back to the apartment, would you mind sticking around for a little while…just until I get home, anyway."

"Of course. I'd be happy to keep an eye on Chuck"

"I just bet you would" Ellie said with a smile that disappeared as soon as the nerd in question pulled open the bathroom door and stepped back into the room. Stepping around Agent Sarah Walker, the older woman began fussing with the buttons on the white, short sleeved shirt that she'd brought from home, stopping only when her brother began whining that he was perfectly capable of doing his own buttons. Stepping backwards, she waited until Chuck had eased himself into the waiting wheelchair and then she pounced, bending over and running her fingers through his unruly hair. "It's time for a haircut, little brother" she announced, "your curls are starting to make funny animal shapes. Women don't appreciate men who have entire 'zoos' atop their heads."

"I like them" Sarah said as she made her way to the back of the chair and, after resisting the urge to run her own fingers through his hair, grabbed the handles of the wheelchair, signaling her readiness to take over the 'Chuck watch'.

Ellie straightened up, reached into a pocket on her smock and withdrew a key ring which she then proceeded to hand to over her brother's head, dropping them into Sarah's hand. "I'll be home around midnight, Sarah. Make sure that he doesn't leave your sight…"

"Hey!" Chuck blurted out.

"…unless he has to use the bathroom. No exceptions! Am I understood?" She directed the last part of her edict downwards, laughing when she saw the pout that stared up at her.

"Yes ma'am" Sarah answered, bending forward to see what had Ellie giggling and then using the opportunity to drag her fingers through Chuck's curls as she straightened back up.

"If the two of you are done playing with my hair, can I please go home now?" Chuck asked as he crossed his arms over his chest, allowing the fingers on his left hand to softly drum against the cast on his right arm.

Ellie bent back over and placed a gentle kiss on her brother's forehead before turning and walking out of the room. She paused outside the door, obviously waiting so she could accompany Chuck and Sarah downstairs. While the trio waited for the elevator, the hospital's intercom came to life and Dr. Ellie Bartowski offered a quick 'goodbye, see you later' before hurrying off to help one of her patients who evidently needed her a little bit more than her brother did.

"I'll take good care of him" Sarah called after the rapidly departing brunette, not surprised when Ellie simply threw a wave over her shoulder before disappearing around a corner. "So, Chuck, are you ready to go home?" she asked as she pushed him into the freshly arrived elevator. Not waiting for an answer, she reached out and stabbed a finger at the button for the lobby and then allowed her hand to come to rest on the surprising toned shoulder in front of her and didn't remove it until the doors opened on the ground floor. Both hands back on the handles in front of her, she made her way to the front doors and then parked her passenger just outside the entrance, promising to return with her car in no time at all.

Chuck watched as Agent Sarah walker moved quickly across the parking lot and had to admit to himself that she sure moved nicely. 'She's a spy with a boyfriend' he chastised himself when he caught the less than pure thoughts that were cascading through his mind. 'A boyfriend who used to be your best friend' he silently added when a few of the thoughts he thought he'd gotten under control, somehow got loose again. Closing his eyes for a moment, he re-opened them when he felt Sarah's hand on his shoulder, letting him know that his ride had arrived and was currently waiting for him to climb into the front seat.

"Still driving a Ford POS, I see" he said as he got slowly to his feet and then slowly slid into the passenger side. "Not an important enough mission to warrant the Porsche?" he asked and immediately regretted it when he caught the flash of hurt in Sarah's eyes.

"If the importance of the mission was reflected by the car I drove, we'd be having this conversation in a Bugatti Veyron, Chuck. I'm sorry if this car isn't up to your usual standards" Sarah said before closing the passenger door with a little more force than actually needed.

Chuck waited until Sarah had slid behind the wheel, closed her door and started the car before turning to look at her. "Listen, Agent Walker, I…"

"Chuck, would you please stop calling me Agent Walker? Couldn't you just call me Sarah? Like you used to?"

"You mean back before you went running back to your super-spy boyfriend, Bryce Larkin?" he snapped at her, not knowing when his original plan to apologize had suddenly been thrown out the window and regretting his question as soon as it left his lips. He waited for the inevitable backlash, and waited, and waited and then he watched as something unexpected happened. Agent Sarah Walker reached her right hand up to her cheek and brushed away something that seemed to glitter in the sunlight. Feeling blindly for her purse, she finally pulled out a pair of sun glasses and then put them on.

"Bryce Larkin is an asshole who almost got me killed because he can't admit that he can't use the Intersect. There is a lot I have to tell you, Chuck, and if you don't mind, could we wait until I get you home before we get into this? Please?"

"What?"

"Please, Chuck…could we just wait? There is so very much I have to tell you but I just can't do it while I'm driving, ok? Just until we get back to the apartment?"

"Alright Sarah, we can wait" Chuck almost whispered his answer and watched in wonder as Sarah Walker used her hand to wipe something away from her cheek…again.

**A/N: again…**the big conversation's next…what will Sarah be willing to tell? Please leave your reviews, thoughts, dirty limericks, snide comments…hell, hit that review thingie and go nuts…I've never deleted a review…could you be the first to make me snap?…ah, you wouldn't do that…it's getting closer and you know you want to be on the 'NICE' list. JT


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:**A chapter for the weekend…hope it isn't too…something or other…and hope it is…well, something or other…let me know through your reviews…fill in the words that I seem to be …ah, what's that word I'm looking for?…man, my head hurts…long day and all that stuff…well, about halfway through new chapters for Swimmer and BLDBAL…so maybe tomorrow but no promises…just hopes. I continue to remain out of the whole 'ownership' loop as far as Chuck goes and it just vexes me…and I'm still spectacularly unsuccessful at making money doing this and to round out the triple crown…still inflicting my scribbles on you all…beta-free. On the plus side of the ledger, I'm still having fun so, thanks Jim. JT

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 5**

The ride from the hospital was made in an uneasy silence, the two occupants of the car exchanging glances but seemingly afraid to speak., both of them not sure what to say. After finding a parking space, Sarah was out of the car and around to the passenger side before her companion was able to get a foot out of the car. Offering her hand, she wasn't surprised when it was ignored, Chuck choosing to pull himself out of the car. Stepping back to give him a sense of space, she followed him as he lead the way to apartment where he paused at the front door and, after searching his pockets, looked over his shoulder and offered a sheepish smile.

"Um…it seems that I'm currently keyless" Chuck said before turning to find Sarah holding Ellie's spare keys in her hand. Stepping aside, he watched as the agent moved forward and quickly unlocked the door and stood aside, waiting for him to lead the way into the apartment. "Thanks, Sarah" he said as he walked through the doorway and stopped just inside, turning to wait until she'd joined him inside before closing the door.

"Are you hungry, Chuck?" Sarah asked, not sure how to start the conversation that they needed to have and hoping that some food might stall things a little while she tried to figure out how to tell him everything she needed to.

"I could eat" he replied, "but I'd really like to take a shower first, if you don't mind."

"I could order a pizza, if that sounds ok…my treat?"

"That would be fine. There's some menus in the top left hand drawer in the kitchen."

"Vegetarian ok?"

"That's fine…just, please, no olives."

"Not a problem, believe me" Sarah answered as she made her way towards the kitchen "Do you need any help with the shower?"

"No...uh…I'm pretty sure that I can wash myself" he answered after turning back to stare at his guest.

"I wasn't offering to help you get clean, Chuck" she replied, a little smile on her face. "I just meant making sure that your cast and stitches were wrapped safely so they wouldn't get wet…although I guess I could…"

"Stop it…just stop. That's just not funny, Miss Walker."

"Sorry Chuck, it's just sweet watching you blush" she replied while walking towards him. "Now, I'm going to make sure that you're 'waterproofed' and then I'll order the pizza while your getting clean. Ok?" she finished before looping her arm through his and pulling him towards the bathroom.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah found herself pacing as she waited for the knock at the door that would signal the arrival of the pizza. She had been listening to the sounds from the bathroom and fought the urge to knock on the door and ask if he needed anything. The light drumming of the shower had stopped ten minutes earlier and she'd been anxiously waiting for Chuck to make his appearance. Just as she was about to give in and knock on the bathroom door, her phone rang and after checking the display, she cursed before tapping the accept icon.

"Walker, secure" she answered, suddenly worried about what the Director might have to say.

"Agent Walker, I'm hoping you have some good news for me."

"No sir, nothing yet. I just got him home and after we have some food I plan to tell him everything that I have to. Please, just give me a little more time to convince him that it's in his best interest to help us. I'm sure I can get his co-operation, it just may take a little more time."

"Agent Walker, I seem to keep repeating myself and I'm not fond of having to do that. You are one of my best but if you can't close this deal, I'll have no choice but to have Mr. Bartowski brought in so we can 'convince' him to help us."

"Sir, I…"

"No, I don't want to hear any more excuses, Walker. You have twelve hours. Do whatever you have to do. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir. I'll do whatever I have to, you have my word."

"Twelve hours, Walker, no more!" Director Langstom Graham barked before disconnecting the call, leaving Agent Sarah Walker staring at the phone in her hand, giving serious thought to hurling it against the nearest wall. Luckily, someone picked that exact moment to knock at the front door and Sarah used the opportunity to take a deep breath and then slide her phone into her pocket. After taking a second calming breath, she walked to the door and, after checking the peep hole, opened the door. Pulling some bills from her pocket, she took the pizza and thanked the delivery driver. Stepping back, she closed the door and turned to find Chuck standing just outside of the bathroom.

"Anything, Agent Walker?"

"Chuck…I…"

"Enjoy the pizza, Agent Walker. I've suddenly lost my appetite." he said in a calm voice as he pushed himself off the wall. "Please leave the keys when you let yourself out. What a treat it was seeing you again. When you get back to DC, make sure you tell Bryce that I said hi" he finished and then turned, walking towards his room, closing the door without a backward glance.

"Chuck, wait…" Sarah managed to say before she sagged back against the door and slowly slid to the floor, her knees refusing to support her. Struggling to catch her breath, she barely noticed the pizza box that was now balanced precariously on her knees. After taking several ragged breaths, she released her right hand from it's grip on the warm box and slowly wiped the moisture from her eyes. Fighting the urge to stay seated where she was, she slowly got to her feet and made her way to the kitchen, finding an empty space on the counter and dropping the pizza there, her appetite gone. Turning around, she stumbled to the dining room table and sat down, not sure what she would do next.

Closing her eyes, the only thing she could see was the look of betrayal and disappointment that had been on Chuck's face before he'd turned away and disappeared into his room. For the first time in a very long time, Sarah Walker didn't know what to do. She'd hoped that she and Chuck would be able to talk and, after she'd told him everything, he'd understand the situation and they'd be able to figure out how to deal with Graham's plans but now, she was afraid that Chuck would never listen to her, never talk to her and that scared her…a lot.

The sound of her cel phone snapped Sarah back to reality and she pulled it from her pocket and nearly screamed when she took note of the caller id. 'Just what I need right now' she told herself when Bryce Larkin's name appeared on the screen. Hitting ignore, she dropped the phone to the table top but before she could go back to trying to figure out what to do, the phone rang again, the display telling her that her ex was calling again. Reaching out, she hit the ignore again and then turned her phone off, promising herself she'd turn it back on once she'd done something about her current predicament and then asking herself how she could label Chuck Bartowski as a predicament when, if she was being honest with herself, he was so much more.

'If you're being so honest with yourself, maybe you should be just as honest with him' she told herself, 'he deserves it'. Almost ready to get up and make the attempt at honesty, which would have to start with her getting him to listen, she heard the sound of a phone ringing coming from the direction of Chuck's room. After the second ring, she heard Chuck's muted voice and then the sound of his door opening. Looking up, she watched him step into the hallway and look in her direction, a frown on his face.

"Agent Walker, I see that you haven't left yet" Chuck said, obviously not happy to find her still there. "Haven't finished your pizza yet?"

She was about to point out that it had only been five minutes when she glanced at her watch and was shocked to realize that nearly an hour had disappeared since she'd paid for the pizza. 'What the hell?' she asked herself, wondering how she'd managed to lose track of time so completely. Looking back up, she found Chuck standing closer, his hand held out with his phone sitting in his palm.

"Your boyfriend wants to talk to you" he said, dropping the phone into her hand before turning and heading back towards his room.

"My what?" she asked the now closed door before looking down at the phone in her hand. The caller ID said it all and Sarah took a deep breath before lifting the phone to her ear. "Bryce, what the fuck do you want?" Sarah hissed into the phone, already imagining how much she was going to enjoy beating the shit out of her ex-partner.

"I was just calling to check up on my best girl and when your phone somehow got turned off, I thought I'd give my best friend a call and see if he'd seen you. Fortunately, I'm not the jealous type or I might wonder what you were doing at his place. Now…"

"Have you gone completely crazy?" she yelled into the phone. "I'm not your best girl, you egotistical little prick! We're not dating, we're not friends and the next time I see you, I'm going to kick your ass! Do you understand me?"

"Sarah, you sound upset. Is something wrong, sweetheart? Is it that time of the month?"

"You fucking moron!" Sarah practically screeched into the phone, her voice echoing in the hallway and surprising her when she realized how loud it was. "Don't ever call me again, Bryce" she added before hitting the disconnect. 'What else could possibly go wrong?' she asked herself as she reached to knock on the door to Chuck's room. Before her hand could make contact, his phone started ringing and after glancing down at the display she looked back up and found herself staring into a pair of brown eyes that had haunted her dreams far more often than she liked to admit. Placing the phone into his outstretched hand, she took a step back and waited.

"Yeah Bryce, what do you want?…listen Bryce, if you want to talk to her, call her…well, if her phone is turned off, maybe she doesn't want to talk to you…I don't care and I'm not getting in the middle of whatever the two of you have going on…I don't care…yeah, of course I know her, we were dating after all…she was what?…well, fuck me…" Chuck finished in a mumble before turning and walking back into his room. When he got to the other side of his bed, he slumped into the chair in front of his desk, his phone slipping from his fingers to fall to the floor beside him.

"Chuck?" Sarah asked quietly from the doorway where she stood transfixed, torn between her fear of entering the room un-invited and her need to offer some sort of comfort. "Chuck?" she called again, overcoming her fear and taking a step into the room.

"Did you know?" Chuck asked without looking up.

"Chuck, I…"

"It's a simple question, Agent Walker…yes or no…did you know?"

Forcing herself to cross the room, Sarah slowly lowered herself to sit on the edge of the bed. "Yes" she whispered before reaching out her hand and gently placing it on his knee, "but I only found out the same day that I got into town" she added, not sure if that distinction would make any difference.

"Why?" Chuck asked after allowing his eyes to meet hers.

"Why what, Chuck?"

"Why is the government still involved in my life? The Intersect is gone. Dr Zarnow said I was 'cured', whatever that meant, so why is the CIA still doing…well, whatever the hell they're doing? Can you tell me that, Agent Walker or are you just here to screw me into compliance for some plan that I'm not allowed to know anything about?"

"Chuck, I'll tell you everything I know…if you'll really listen to what I have to say. Some of it won't be pleasant but I really need you to let me get it all out. If you'll let me, once I'm done, I promise to answer all of your questions…about anything" Sarah said in a soft but firm voice, her eyes never leaving Chuck's. "The only thing I ask is once I get started, you let me finish before saying anything. I don't think I could do this more than once and I really need you to hear me out…please?" she waited and watched Chuck's face while he thought about her offer. She got worried when he slowly got to his feet and walked past her, heading out into the apartment. "Chuck?" she called after him.

Pausing just outside his room, Chuck turned back. "I could really use a beer but since I'm on pain medication, I thought I'd get myself some ice water before I listened to whatever story you seem so desperate to tell me. Can I get you something while I'm in the kitchen, Agent Walker?"

"No thank you, Chuck" she answered before dropping her eyes from his. Chuck didn't say anything else and when she looked up again, he was gone, listening, she heard him as he found a glass, filled it with ice and then opened and closed the refrigerator door. Moments later, he re-appeared and made his way back to the chair he'd been sitting in and resumed his position.

"Well, Agent Walker, I guess we might as well get this over with" Chuck said, sounding like he wasn't looking forward to this but was resigned to it happening.

"Alright, first things first…this may not seem important but I need you to know that I am not dating Bryce Larkin. It may seem like an odd starting point and, in fact, it's not a starting point at all but that fact will color many of the things I have to say so I need you understand and that there is nothing between Bryce and I…anymore." When Chuck remained silent, Sarah took a deep breath and then a second before 'leaping', because that was what she decided this would be, a huge leap of faith on her part.

"Almost fourteen months ago, after Dr. Zarnow announced that he and his team had successfully removed the Intersect from your brain, the mission here in Burbank was closed and I was recalled to DC. I thought about saying goodbye…"

"Why didn't you?"

"Chuck, remember you agreed to let me do this without interrupting? Please."

"Ok…sorry" he replied and almost brought a smile to her lips when he pantomimed locking his lips and pocketing the key.

"I left without a backward glance because I was sure that it was the only way I could leave without making a fool of myself…and I told myself it would be easier on you. When I got back to DC…"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Chuck had been sitting spellbound for almost an hour as Agent Sarah walker brought him up to date on everything that had happened to her, professionally and personally, since she'd disappeared from his life all those months ago. He'd tried to hide his feelings but Sarah was a trained agent and she noticed them all. The look of sadness when she spoke of taking Bryce back into her bed and even though it had just been the one time, he still felt hurt. She saw the shock when she'd told of Bryce's increasing inability to use the Intersect and his increasingly erratic behavior which Sarah was sure was a direct result of his incompatibility with the new Intersect. She could see he found it hard to believe that she'd 'broken up' with Bryce, after all, he was sure that his former friend always got the great girls and he knew that Sarah definitely fit that bill. He'd been embarrassed when Sarah had insisted on showing him the scars that were a constant reminder of the last mission she'd gone on with Bryce, even trying to cover his eyes when she'd pulled her t-shirt off and un-buttoned her jeans so she could show him the proof that, in her and Director Graham's opinion, Bryce Larkin had become a danger to anyone he worked with and that was why he was currently benched, awaiting a decision about what would be done with him. She'd also noticed the flash of desire that seeing her in next to no clothing had caused and she'd been secretly flattered and aroused to find that she had that kind of effect on him. She knew that men found her desirable but finding out that she had that effect on Chuck meant a great deal to her. She'd pulled her clothes back on a little slower than was really necessary, hoping Chuck might enjoy the little show and then wanting to smile like a teenager when his obvious signs of discomfort told her that he had. Once she'd finished getting re-dressed, Chuck had cleared his throat and informed her that he needed a brief break to get some fresh water and had practically run from the room.

When Chuck returned, he'd taken his seat again and waited patiently for Sarah to resume her story. When it seemed that Sarah was done speaking, he looked confused and then cleared his throat. "Is that it, Agent Walker? I mean, there sure seems like a whole lot you haven't explained yet."

"I know, Chuck, I just thought that maybe now would be a good time for some of the many questions that I'm sure you have. Why don't we try that for a little while…I did promise to answer anything I can."

"You mean, anything that your bosses won't mind you answering, don't you, Agent Walker?"

"No Chuck, I mean if I know the answer, I'll tell you. Ok?"

"What about Sam?" he asked, deciding to put her to the test with the very first query.

"The CIA has been watching over you ever since you were 'cured', Chuck. Agent Stinson was your latest 'watcher'" she answered, offering the sir quotes when she described the young woman's job.

"Her job? She was paid to sleep with me?"

"No Chuck, she wasn't paid to sleep with you. She was paid to keep you safe and she chose to get close to you…it was her choice to pursue a physical relationship with you" Sarah answered even though she knew that her words would hurt him.

"Oh, that makes it seem so much nicer" Chuck replied, making no effort to hide his sarcasm and, underneath of that, his hurt.

"I'm so sorry Chuck. I had no idea, really."

"Well, that makes it all better. So, Director Graham wants something from me now and he what, benches the 'B-team' and sends in his best to get me under control?" Chuck asked, noticing Sarah flinch at his question and he turned his back before continuing. "What the hell is so important that you're willing to do 'anything' to get me back on the team? I guess I never knew you at all, did I Agent Walker? Well, what does your master want from me? What have I got that's so important that it would land the legendary Agent Walker in my bed, if I asked" Chuck spat out before turning back around, needing to hear the answer from a woman he once thought he might have been falling in love with. He didn't find what he'd been expecting. Instead of the confident and very sexy Agent Sarah Walker, he found a young woman, her hands covering her face as she silently sobbed, her shoulders shaking.

Moving slowly, Chuck took a seat next to Sarah on the edge of the bed. Not sure if he was being played or not, he couldn't ignore the tears anymore. Real or not, he just wasn't the type of guy who could let a woman cry…not if there was anything he might do to ease her pain. With a gentle ease, he placed his left arm around her shoulders and was shocked when Sarah seemed to melt into him, her face finding it's way to his chest and her arms wrapping themselves around his waist. His arm drew her closer to him as he rubbed slow circles on her back. He went to wrap his other arm around her as well and realized that casts, although great for healing, sucked for comforting. Letting his broken arm fall back to his side, he simply applied a little more pressure with his left and pulled her closer still. He didn't know what to say so he just offered a soft 'I'm sorry' into her hair as he held her close, repeating the phrase as he rocked her against his chest.

As he felt Sarah's tears soak through his shirt, he found himself wishing he hadn't said the things he'd said, knowing that there was no way to take them back. Chuck had no idea how long he'd been holding Sarah when he heard her say something against his chest. It was so quiet that he wasn't even sure that she'd spoken until he felt her pull away from his chest and look up at him with an unasked question in her eyes.

"I'm sorry Sarah, did you say something?"

"I said, they want you Chuck…they want you to become the Intersect…again."

"What if I don't want to?" he asked, already afraid that he knew the answer.

"I'm so sorry Chuck, but they're not going to give you a choice…and I don't know how to help you" she finished in a whisper before falling back against his chest, her shoulders beginning to shake once more.

**A/N:2 - **Thanks to everyone who has 'alerted' this story, 'favorited' this story or did either of those for me….it is so cool that you're enjoying this. It almost seems needy when I add my pleas for reviews but…please, hit the button and let me know. JT


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **A shortie for y'all…I was in the middle of a chapter for BLDBAL and this just came pouring out…hope it is pleasing in some way or another…I think it might be a little lighter than the previous chapters but…what the heck, I just couldn't help it…a shorter ramble than usual…what?…it's a Friday and I have stuff to do…ok, not really but I wanted to drop this…hope you like…remember, reviews are always a joy to receive…good or bad, they all get read and when I'm not suffering from an extended bout of laziness, I try and answer…I don't own Chuck…I don't make oodles of money doing this(or that, for that matter)…I'm slogging along with the kind guidance of a beta…and for that the beta-guild sends me weekly 'thank you' notes…who knew that having knowledge about the 'what fors' and 'why nots' of writing would make someone so cool…and afraid to read my dreck with out the proper filters in place…so, here's where I beg for your valuable time in the form of reviews before thanking the man who nudge me in the general direction of writing…thanks Jim….**JT**I

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 6**

Sarah Walker awoke with a start and immediately reached towards the space next to her, sitting up when her hand encountered only cool sheets instead of the warm body that had held her most of the night. Her eyes adjusted rapidly to the darkness of Chuck's room, the glowing numbers on an alarm clock the only source of light. A quick inspection revealed that she was alone in the room and panic set in. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she found her shoes and was moving towards the door before she realized that her gun was missing from it's customary place at the small of her back. Glancing around, she found it resting on the nightstand right next to her purse. Grabbing them both, she was out the door just as the numbers on the digital clock changed to 5:00. The entire apartment was dark and after a quick look towards the bathroom and finding it open and dark, she paused at the door to Ellie's room and softly pushed the door open. Finding only the sleeping forms of Chuck's sister and her fiancé, she closed the door and moved towards the front door.

After stepping out of the apartment and closing the door behind her, Sarah stepped towards the fountain in the center of the courtyard and stopped there, trying to decide where her search would go next. Fourteen months ago she would've banged on Casey's door, demanding to see the video feeds for the previous night but that option was now out. She wouldn't allow herself to consider the possibility that Graham could've ordered Chuck's extraction because that would mean admitting that someone could've taken him from her grasp while she slept. Shaking her head in an attempt to clear the last vestiges of sleep, she turned and headed out of the courtyard, pausing when she reached the street, taking note that her Ford pos wasn't in the parking spot she'd left it in last night. Reaching into her purse, she found that the keys for the car were missing and a possible puzzle piece fell into place.

'Find the car, find Chuck' she told herself while pulling her phone from her pocket. A few taps at the touch screen and she was staring at a local map with a flashing dot, pinpointing what she hoped was the location of her missing…and Sarah paused, wondering what exactly was he to her. Was he an asset, a mark, a friend? While she was trying to put a label to what Chuck was, she searched for and dialed a local cab company, fretting about the promised ten minute wait.

After making herself take a seat on the curb, Sarah pulled the GPS program back up and couldn't decide whether to cry or laugh when she realized where her car was sitting, sure now that Chuck was with the vehicle. "The beach" she mumbled to herself, remembering the last time she'd been there for a sunrise, sitting beside the lanky nerd as the sun warmed their backs after clearing the mountains to the west. 'Trust me, Chuck' she recalled telling him when he'd asked her what would happen to him and his family and friends. Could she bring herself to tell him that again when she honestly didn't know if she would be able to protect him this time.

Looking at the time, she couldn't believe that Director Graham hadn't called to inform her that she, and Chuck, were out of time. When her phone seemed to choose that exact moment to ring, she took a deep breath when the very name she'd been thinking about appeared on the caller ID.

"Walker, secure" she answered just as a pair of headlights turned a corner a few blocks away and headed in her direction.

"Agent Walker, is there a reason why Mr. Bartowski is sitting on the beach and you're sitting on the curb in front of the asset's apartment?"

"Um, yes sir, I'm on my way to meet Ch…Mr. Bartowski at the beach."

"Is there some reason that Mr. Bartowski is driving a company vehicle…and you're waiting for a cab?"

"Yes sir" Sarah answered as she got to her feet and walked to the cab that had just pulled up. "I was feeling a little under the weather and I told Chu…Mr. Bartowski that I'd meet him there after I took a…uh, a nap."

"And the reason you aren't driving the vehicle that was signed out to you?"

"Well, he, uh, couldn't drive his Nerdherder because of his broken arm."

"And the reason you're waiting for a cab instead of driving this, um, Nerdherder?"

"It's a company car…"

"Agent Walker, I think I've heard enough. You've already exceeded the twelve hours you asked for and I'm just not seeing a reason that I shouldn't have the Agents watching Mr. Bartowski simply bring him in. Is there something I'm missing here?"

Sir, I'm on my way to meet him and I'll have him with me when I walk into the local office at nine this morning."

"Alright, Agent Walker, I'll give you until nine. If you and the asset aren't sitting in the conference room at nine, I will be issuing a pick-up order on him…and an arrest warrant for you. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir" Sarah answered and wasn't surprised when she realized a dial tone had taken the place of her boss. Resisting the urge to swear, she pulled up the GPS program again and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the flashing dot hadn't moved. "Please be there, Chuck" she said under her breath as she settled back into the seat, ignoring the scenery while trying to figure out how to keep a certain curly haired nerd out of the hands of a government agency that didn't care about him…not like she did.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The sound of someone clearing their throat pulled Agent Sarah Walker back to reality, her thoughts of Chuck Bartowski replaced by an old man telling her the total for her early morning cab ride. After handing the driver a twenty and telling him to keep the change, she stepped out of the door and did a quick survey of the parking lot, not surprised to find it nearly deserted. Besides her temporary Ford, there were a couple of vans that must have been the source of the surfers she noticed out in the surf. Looking to the west, she took note of the brightening sky, the sun beginning to force it's way through LA's constant haze. Walking to the edge of the parking lot, she scanned the beach and finally spotted a lone figure sitting about a hundred yards down the beach, Pulling off her shoes and leaving them sitting on the hood of her car, Sarah set off towards Chuck, still trying to figure out what she'd say when she got to his side.

"So, Agent Walker, not to encourage the déjà vu but how long have you been watching me?"

"I just got here, actually" she answered as she slowly sank to the ground on his left side. "I was worried when I woke up and you weren't there" she added while hooking her arm through his as she moved closer to him.

"Sorry about disappearing on you like that. I'd hoped to get back before you woke up but I lost track of time…I'm really sorry that I left you stranded" he said, staring out at the ocean while he spoke.

"It's ok, Chuck. I'm just glad I was able to find you" she responded, not wanting to freak him out by telling him about the surveillance team that had been following him.

"How'd you manage to do that, if you don't mind me asking."

"I wish I could tell you that this beach was the first place I thought of but the truth is I used…"

"The GPS in your government issued FORD 'pos', right?" he finished for her, not surprised that she hadn't remembered the beach where she'd once told him to trust her.

"Right" she answered, secretly sad that she couldn't have told him that she remembered this beach where she'd once told him to trust her.

"I guess you don't remember this beach, huh?"

"Of course I do, Chuck."

"Well, I don't mean to repeat myself…fourteen months later, but there's nothing I can do about this, is there?" he asked, sounding defeated despite the small smile he offered her.

Sarah reached out a hand and tenderly brushed some curls away from his forehead, being careful to avoid the bandaged part of his brow. "I can't think of anything…unless you might want to run? We might be able to…"

"No, Agent Walker. We both know we wouldn't get far and I could never ask you to take that risk. Your career means to much to you and I wouldn't want you to do anything to jeopardize it."

"You wouldn't have to ask, Chuck. I'd do anything I could to help you. Please believe me when I say that" Sarah told him as she stared into his eyes, hoping he would see the truth and not think her words were just more lies from a CIA Agent who had been sent into his life.

"I believe you Sarah. So, what happens next? Is Casey going to re-appear next so the NSA can keep an eye on their half of the Intersect?"

"Actually, no. After the disaster with the first Intersect and, once you had been 'cured', the NSA and the CIA decided to stop playing nice. Director Graham ran rough shod over several closed door committees and, in the end, General Beckman got relegated to a secondary position as far as the Intersect is concerned. So, no, you won't be seeing John Casey…at least not in conjunction with the Intersect."

"So, what's next, Sarah?"

"I'm supposed to have you in a CIA conference room at nine so the Director can do whatever he…I, uh, Chuck, I honestly don't know what's going to happen. All I was told was to deliver you to a local CIA branch so you can speak with Graham through a video conference."

"And the NSA has nothing to do with the Intersect?"

"No, it's strictly a CIA project now."

"Well, I wonder if General Beckman might be interested in getting back into the Intersect business?" Chuck asked to no one in particular.

"Chuck, what are you thinking?" Sarah asked, noticing the far away look in his eyes that she'd remembered seeing before whenever he was deep in thought. When she didn't get an immediate answer to her question, she thought about asking again but decided to remain silent and wait to see what was on his mind. As the minutes ticked away, Sarah found it harder and harder to fight the desire she had to grab the man sitting next to her and shake him until he divulged whatever was on his mind. Just when she thought she couldn't stand any more of the silence, Chuck turned to her with a smile.

"So, Sarah, do we have time to have breakfast before you have to deliver me to the CIA?" Chuck asked as he got to his feet. He leaned down and offered his hand to the confused looking blonde who had been seated at his side.

"What?" Sarah asked, dumbfounded by the question…and the smile that accompanied it. Reaching out, she took the offered hand and allowed herself to be helped to her feet.

"I asked if we had time for breakfast before you have…"

"I heard what you said, Chuck Bartowski, I just don't understand how you can think about breakfast at a time like this."

"Well, Agent Walker, experts say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and I just thought that if I'm going to be talking to a US General this morning, that maybe I should have a hearty breakfast…and I thought that maybe you might like to join me. If not, I guess you could sit in the car while I eat, but that just seems rude" he responded while using Sarah's hand to pull her along with him as he headed towards the parking lot that was beginning to fill up.

"I'm sorry Chuck, did you say that you're going to be talking to a US General this morning?"

"Well, only if you have her number. If not, then I guess I'll be talking to a switchboard operator in Washington DC until someone can get me through to the General" he replied, his hand still firmly gripping Sarah's as they left the beach and moved towards her car.

"Chuck, I still don't understand what is going on?"

Letting go of the hand he'd been holding, Chuck reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring of keys that he casually flipped to Sarah who caught them without any seeming effort, snatching them from the air with one hand while using her other hand to snatch her shoes from the hood of the car.

"What's not to understand, Sarah? I've asked you to breakfast and afterwards, if you have the number…and don't mind sharing, I'm going to Call General Diane Beckman and ask her if she thinks that the NSA would like to make a counter-offer for the services of Charles Irving Bartowski."

"Have you gone crazy, Chuck? Is this some delayed reaction to the blow you took to your head?"

"Sarah, the CIA wants to use me for their Intersect and they really haven't made it seem that appealing. Perhaps the NSA could make a more lucrative offer. Now, if your loyalty to the CIA won't let you allow me to try this, I'll remind you that you promised me 'anything' and if that doesn't include giving me the General's number, then please just turn your back for a few minutes and I'll try to buy myself enough time to give it a try."

"You are not going to run away from me Chuck, I won't allow it…and more importantly, the surveillance team that has been following you won't allow you to run. Now before you get pissed at me, I didn't know about the team until about an hour ago and I just didn't think it was something I needed to bring up, unless we were going to try and make a run for it."

"Agent Walker, you've said 'we' a few times this morning, do you mind if I ask why…before we get back to the whole 'surveillance team, breakfast, calling the General' thing?"

"Because, Charles Irving Bartowski, I have no plans on letting you face any of this alone…at least, not if I can help it" she answered, walking around to the passenger side of the car and, after opening it, holding the passenger door for him. "Get in…please. You asked me to breakfast, before you stated babbling about other stuff, and I want to take you up on your offer, so, get in."

"But, what about the other…"

"Get in, Chuck" she said again, leaning close to him to add in a whisper, "I don't think we're being listened in on but I'd rather be safe than sorry so, no more talking until we're moving, ok?" she finished and then gave in to an overwhelming urge and nipped at his ear, giving the lobe a quick tug before releasing it.

"Sarah, what the hell was that?"

"Shhh! That was me saying 'yes, I'd be happy to go to breakfast with you, Chuck', now shut up and get in" she said as she pushed him towards the car and then waiting until he slid inside before slamming the door. Once back around the car and behind the wheel, Sarah stuck the keys into the ignition and once the car rumbled to life, she turned up the radio before dropping the car into gear. Pulling out of the parking space, she guided the car towards the exit as she pulled her seat belt across her chest and snapped the buckle into place. Reaching across the car, she tapped Chuck on the chest and waited until he got the hint and put his seat belt into place.

"Left ahead, Sarah. I can't explain it but I have a sudden craving for waffles. I hope that's ok with you because the place we're going doesn't serve anything else. And they have a payphone in the back so I can make a call…if you have the number that I need."

"Waffles sounds perfect…and I'm pretty sure I can find you that number while we eat. Chuck, this seems to be shaping up to be a really interesting morning, I just hope I still have a job when it's over. If not, I just may be asking you to take me out more often…since me being unemployed and Top Ramen just aren't a good fit" Sarah smiled as she spoke, feeling an odd mix of terror and happiness envelope her as she glanced at the man seated beside her.

"Alrighty then, let's get you fed and then we'll see if our morning can end up with up with us both avoiding any 4 by 8, windowless rooms. And in case I forget to say it later…thank you, Sarah Walker."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Director Langstom Graham was ready to pound his fist against the surface of his desk, sure that he was about to do something he would end up regretting. Taking a deep breath, he looked back at the monitor on his desk and waited for the other shoe to drop. The video conference he'd scheduled for this morning had started right on time and he remembered being a little surprised that Agent Sarah Walker had actually been able to carry out her assignment. He was sure that she was well on the way to being, if not already, compromised because of her brief history with the asset.

His monitor had beeped to life at the scheduled time and it took him a moment to realize that Walker and Bartowski weren't sitting in the CIA conference room they were supposed to be in. Before he could send out a demand for his surveillance team offer an explanation, a second party appeared as the screen split into two feeds. He could have been knocked over with a feather when General Diane Beckman's face appeared in the second half of the screen.

"Well, good morning Langstom, what a pleasure to see you after all these months" the general said, making no effort to hide the fact that she really wasn't taking any pleasure from seeing him…at all.

"What do you want, Diane? I'm in the middle of a video conference with one of my agents so, if I could call you back?"

"No, I don't think that you can. You see, I'm in the middle of a video conference with one of my people as well, one of my latest recruits. In fact, you may know who he is, isn't that right, Chuck?"

**A/N: **Technically, I don't know if this qualifies as a 'cliffy'…your thoughts on the matter would look great included with your reviews…. JT


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: **I know, I know…what's taking so long?…well, I can't blame the delay on the amazing quality of the writing so I'm going to go with radioactive monkeys…that's right, irradiated primates with too much fur are to blame…what? Why would I lie? Well, sure, to get to do that…but not because I'm slow with updates…that's entirely on the glow in the dark orangutans that seem to be visiting me with increasing frequency…usually late at night…which is troubling on many levels…especially the mess they seem to delight in leaving behind…damn dirty apes…sure, they've got opposable thumbs but have you ever heard of filthy stinky monkeys writing for television?…besides Jersey Shore?...and one character developed for the 3rd season of Chuck?…that's right, the don't write(much) and I'm use that little fact to cheer myself up after one of their nightly visit when I through myself into a chair in front of my computer and pound out stuff like this…the chapter, not the A/N…and I smile whenever someone enjoys my scribbles enough to take the time and leave a review(hint, hint)…now, to wrap the ramble, I don't own Chuck or anything in the 'Chuckverse'…I continue to maintain my amateur status, as far as writing is concerned, by remaining unpaid…I continue to flaunt my ego(and abysmal grammar and spelling) by remaining beta free…and most importantly, I'm still having fun and until that ends, I'll keep thanking Jim for the nudge. **JT**

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 7**

CIA Director Langstom Graham was not a happy camper. Minutes earlier, a scheduled video conference with one of his best agents and the asset she was supposed to be bringing in had taken an unexpected turn. Instead of Agent Sarah Walker and Charles Irving Bartowski, he'd been blindsided by the appearance of General Diane Beckman who'd announced that she'd somehow recruited the one person who'd successfully handled the Intersect download. Resisting the nearly overpowering urge to slam his fists onto his desk, choosing instead to excuse himself and suspend his end of the video conference. Once he was sure that he was free of the link, the older man pulled a phone from his desk drawer and dialed a number he'd hoped he wouldn't have to use.

"This is Graham. Is team number one still close to Agent Walker and the target? What do you mean, they lost them? Activate Walker's tracker and take them both into custody. I don't care where they are and unless they're in the local CIA branch, I want the two of them in our hands in the next five minutes. Make it happen or start packing for your new posting, counting corn mites in bumphuq, Iowa" he hissed into the phone before hitting the disconnect and tossing the device onto the top of his desk. Taking a deep breath and then a second, he slowly reached out and re-opened the video link.

"Well, Diane, I must apologize for the interruption. Now, while I'm sure that you believe that the NSA will be working with the Intersect again, I feel that I should remind you that the CIA was granted full control of the project and…"

"And you've had such an amazing success, thanks to your star agent, Bryce Larkin. I've been reading all about his successful integration of the Intersect program. He really has an amazing body count…of his fellow agents. I can only hope that we can improve on his record when we…"

"Diane, I don't know where you've been getting your information but I'm certain we won't have to worry about comparing notes any time soon" Director Graham said before pausing when his phone pinged, alerting him to an incoming text. Glancing down briefly, he looked back up with a smile appearing on his face. "Now, since it appears that you can't produce your new recruit" he gloated just as the video feed from Agent Sarah Walker was replaced with static, " I'll have to cut this discussion short. Have a nice day" he finished before reaching out and tapping a key, ending the feed from General Diane Beckman.

Picking his phone back up, he hit the redial and put the phone to his ear. "Talk to me, Johnson…That's good news. I want Bartowski on a plane to DC within the hour…I don't care how you handle Walker. Make sure that she's transported to a local holding facility. I'll deal with her later…Make sure that a medic looks over Bartowski and then accompanies him on the flight to DC. Good work, Johnson…No, you won't need to make the trip because I have another team that will be arranging to escort the package…I'm sorry, Agent, it almost sounds like you are questioning my orders…that's what I thought. Good day" Langstom Graham finished the call and then dialed another number.

:We've got the package" he spoke into the phone and then disconnected the call before dropping it back onto his desk. Leaning back in his chair, he allowed himself a brief smile before reaching for the file he'd been going over before Agent Sarah Walker had almost ruined his day. Moments after opening the file his phone pinged again and after reading the incoming text he threw the phone across his office, not caring when it exploded into pieces when it impacted with the far wall. "Dammit" he growled before reaching for the phone on his desk and dialed. "Johnson, you told me you had them in sight and you've lost them again?…you have thirty minutes to contact me with good news or I'll be signing the transfer papers that are sitting on my desk right now and you'll be able to get started on your mite counting!" he yelled into the phone before hitting the disconnect and then slamming the phone down.

After taking several calming breaths, Director Langstom Graham reached for his phone but stopped midway, telling himself that he would wait the thirty minutes he'd given Johnson with the hope that he'd hear good news because he wasn't ready to dial the number he'd been about to dial…not unless he had good news to pass on.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

General Diane Beckman wouldn't admit it to anyone but she was worried. She respected Sarah Walker's record but she'd known, fourteen months ago, that the agent had formed an unhealthy attachment to Charles Bartowski in the short time she'd been his handler. The surprise call from the agent and her former asset had offered her a chance to get the NSA involved with the Intersect program again and she'd jumped at the opportunity, also secretly thrilled for the opportunity to rain on Langstom Graham's parade. Despite her extensive connections, the CIA had managed to ace the NSA out of the Intersect project and she'd been waiting for the chance to get her fingers back into that pie.

The sudden interruption of the video conference left a bad feeling in her stomach and after Graham ended the call, making no effort to hide a knowing smirk, she'd been on her phone right away, scrambling two teams she happened to have in Los Angeles with instructions to find Charles Bartowski and take him into protective custody, using any means necessary, even deadly force, if the CIA drew first. Almost as an afterthought, she informed her teams that, if possible, Agent Sarah Walker should be afforded the opportunity to accompany Bartowski when he was transported to DC.

After making several calls to a few close friends on 'the hill', she'd made a call to the only person who seemed to be less impressed with Bartowski than she'd been, knowing that the agent was in the area, using his leave time to visit his own personal 'mecca', the Ronald Reagan Library.

"John, I know you're on leave but we have a situation and I need your help" General Diane Beckman said, worried that Casey's special skill set might be needed to make the difference in the current situation.

"What can I do to help, General?"

"I received a call this morning from Charles Bartowski.."

"Chuck me" the big man mumbled under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing ma'am. I'm sorry for the interruption. Please continue."

"As I was saying, I received a call from Mr. Bartowski. It seems that the CIA is trying to acquire him for his possible usefulness in the Intersect project…and they don't seem to be willing to give him any say in the matter. Agent Walker was dispatched to bring him in and he decided that he wanted to explore his options. He managed to convince Walker to give him my number and he called this morning, offering me the chance to get the NSA back into the 'Intersect business' as he called it."

"And the reason for this call, General?"

"I was in the middle of a video conference when the signal was suddenly lost and Graham suddenly seemed very smug before hanging up on me. I've already activated two teams that were stationed in Burbank and I need you on station to find out just what the hell is going on. John, I can't tell you how important this is. If Graham is going after Mr. Bartowski, we need to get involved. Do whatever you can, John. I'm not sure how Walker fits into this but if you feel she might help, us her. Keep me posted" she finished , disconnecting the call and reaching for a file she'd received earlier, hoping her source in the CIA had come through for her.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah Walker was on her feet as soon as the video signal they'd been watching was cut, reaching for Chuck's arm while she scanned the surrounding area, looking for anything that was out of place. Pulling her phone from her pocket as she pulled at the cast in her hand, wincing when she heard the gasp from the man who'd been seated next to her. Hitting the speed dial on her phone, she cursed when she heard a pre-recorded message informing her that her service was currently blocked.

"God dammit" Sarah cursed quietly before releasing her hold on Chuck so she could pull the battery from her phone before slipping the device back into her pocket. After another quick scan of the coffee shop, she reached for Chuck's arm again, starting to get a little upset that he was still seated, staring at the laptop they'd borrowed earlier. "C'mon, Chuck. We have to get moving."

"Why? What's going on, Agent Walker?"

"My phones been disabled and I didn't think to bring a burner so we need to get out of here and find some way to contact General Beckman before Graham's extraction team shows up" Sarah answered, her hand once again on Chuck's cast as she gently pulled him towards her, happy when he began to get to his feet .

"I don't understand. I thought I was going to work for General Beckman."

"Chuck, I'm pretty sure that Director Graham doesn't give a shit about your intentions and I'm willing to bet that the agents that have been following you for the last few days are minutes away with orders to take you into 'protective' custody. If they find us, you'll be on a flight to DC within minutes…"

"And you, what about you, Agent Walker?" Chuck asked, worried by the concerned look on Sarah's face.

"I'm sure that they have orders to take me into custody as long as I don't resist. Since I'm not about to let you be taken, I'll probably end up tranked and in custody…if I'm lucky."

Pulling his arm from her grip, Chuck stepped back, putting the small table between them. Pausing to hug his broken arm against his body, he took a breath and stepped further away as Sarah took a step in his direction. "I don't want you getting hurt because of me, Agent Walker. Why don't we split up? You can move faster without me slowing you down, that way you can get away while I try and blend into the crowd. Then I…"

"Chuck, listen to yourself. The team have been following you for days. You're not going to blend in and slip away…and I'm not going to let you try" she announced while, after a silly looking fake step, she rounded the table and latched on to his good arm, pulling him to her side. "We are leaving…now" she announced as she started guiding them towards the front door. They'd taken a couple of steps when Sarah suddenly stopped and turned around, heading towards the back hallway.

"What, is someone waiting out front?" Chuck asked, doing his best to stay with Sarah as she hurried towards the back of the coffee shop.

"No, I just realized that I needed to take care something before we hit the road" she answered with a blush before stopping in front of a closed door. "Stay right here…don't move" she commanded before releasing his arm and entering the restroom.

Chuck stood patiently, feeling a little embarrassed whenever someone happened to look his way. He'd just pulled his phone from his pocket and was about to call Ellie when the door swung open and Sarah stepped back into the hallway. Reaching out, she grabbed the phone from his hand and deftly removed the battery from the device before handing it back to him. Ignoring the confused look on his face, she grabbed his other arm and started pulling him towards the front door again.

"Sarah, I…uh…I should probably follow your example" Chuck said while gently trying to pull his arm from her grip.

"What? Are you sure?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm pretty sure I know when I gotta go."

"Ok, Chuck" Sarah replied, turning once again and heading back towards the hallway. Without slowing down, she pulled open the restroom door and pulled Chuck in behind her, releasing his arm once the door closed behind them. Leaning back against the door after making sure it was locked, she reached behind her back and pulled out her gun, slowly looking it over after ejecting the magazine and then slamming it back home.

"Uh, Sarah I, uh…"

"Listen, Chuck, I understand that you're a little bashful but I'm not leaving you alone. I promise not to peek. Now hurry up!"

"But you left me alone when you used the bath…"

"Chuck, I'm not leaving! Piss or don't but I'm going to be standing here until you make up your mind" she told him while leaning back against the door. "If it helps, I promise I won't peek" she added with a smile.

Realizing that he wasn't going to win the argument, Chuck simply did his best to pretend that he was alone. Thanks to his broken arm, he needed almost twice as long as normal to finish his 'business' and he silently thanked his companion for understanding that fact and not pushing him to hurry up. As they stepped back into the hallway, they were greeted by a young man who smiled and winked a knowing wink while offering his hand up for a high-five.

"Oh grow up" Sarah muttered under her breath as she once again grabbed Chuck's arm and began pulling him towards the front door. "Any ideas about where we might be able to duck out of sight until I can get in touch with General Beckman?"

"The arcade on the pier?" Chuck offered as he followed Sarah out onto the sidewalk.

"Ok. First we stop at 7-Eleven and pick up a phone and then we'll do our best to remain under the radar until we can make contact with the NSA." Sarah said while flagging down a cab.

"Why don't we just borrow someone's phone to call the General?"

"Because I want the NSA to be able to track us until you're safe" Sarah responded as she held the cab door while Chuck slid into the backseat. "Now slide over" Sarah added before joining him.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Major John Casey glanced at the display on his phone, the blinking dot that was the supposed location of Walker and Bartowski indicated that the pair were less than five hundred yards away. Pulling into the parking lot he immediately caught sight of the of agents exiting a car parked several rows over. Pulling into the closest parking space, Casey was out of the car and moving quickly towards the pair, his eyes searching the area for any other potential problems. He wanted to laugh when he was able to sneak up on the CIA agents, removing them from the equation with no effort. After checking the area again, Casey had just entered the arcade when the sound of gunfire drew his attention to the far side of the building.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah scanned the crowd again, silently chastising herself for letting Chuck talk her into the arcade as the perfect place to lay low. The General had just called to let her know that John Casey was on scene and would be directing the extraction when she caught sight of three suspicious individuals making their way towards their position. Stepping forward, she drew her pistol and fired three rounds into the ceiling, the sound of her weapon having the desired effect when all of the people near her starting running towards the nearest exit, forcing the three incoming agents to scatter to avoid the press of bodies.

Chuck watched as Sarah positioned herself between him and the armed men who were cautiously moving towards them. He took the phone that she tossed back to him, immediately hitting the redial while trying to make himself as small as possible. The general's voice got his attention and he raised the phone to his ear just as one of the advancing men pitched forward, his eyes rolling back in his head before he faceplanted onto the concrete floor. Sarah looked just as surprised as he was when they both caught sight of John Casey making his way towards them.

"General, the cavalry just arrived. I'll call you back as soon as this calms down" he said before hanging up the phone and slipping it into his pocket. Just as he was about to step forward, another of the agents crumpled to the ground, this one close enough that Chuck could see the tiny dart that was stuck in the man's neck. When his eyes shifted to the third agent, he noticed the gun aimed in his direction and, without thinking, he took two quick steps to his side in an attempt to shield Sarah. He felt a quick prick at his shoulder and then everything went black.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah wanted to scream at Chuck when he stepped in front of the tranq dart that had been meant for her. She was forced to drop her pistol so she could use both hands to catch and slowly lower her 'shield' to the ground. After making sure that he was resting as comfortably as possible, she looked up just in time to see the third agent fall to the ground, out before he hit the floor.

"Walker, how's the moron?" John Casey asked, stepping close and then turning to scan the surrounding area.

"He took a tranq meant for me so he'll be out for a while."

Turning back, Casey gave the pair a once over, taking in the cast and the large bandage on Chuck's forehead. "What happened to him? He get handsy and you had to let him know that you're taken? Convince him that Bryce's plaything was strictly a 'one-idiot' girl?"

"Shut the fuck up, Casey. Are you going to help me get Chuck out of here? I think that's what the General ordered you to do, isn't it?"

"Actually, she told me to get the nerd to safety…and to bring you along if you didn't offer any resistance. I'm thinking that tranqing you might be the best way to handle this" he replied, aiming his gun at her.

"Casey, you'll have to do just that if you think I'll just let you take him. I promised him that I'd keep him safe…"

"Yak, yak, yak" Casey said while looking around again before holstering his gun and then bending down to pull Chuck from Sarah's arms. Straightening back up, he threw the unconscious nerd over his shoulder. "I'm hoping you're a little better than your pals I had to take out on my way in here. Let's go" he said as he turned and started towards the entrance, not bothering to check to make sure she was following.

In less than three minutes, Casey was pulling out of the parking lot while he kept a wary eye on any vehicles that got close to his own. Once he'd merged into the local traffic, he glanced over his shoulder, noting the way Walker had the nerd's head cradled in her lap, looking up every few moments to look for anything that might be a threat.

"I haven't spotted any tails" Casey called back over his shoulder while pulling his phone from his pocket. Keying the speed dial, he put the phone to his ear while easing the vehicle into the faster traffic heading up the on-ramp for the 5. "General, I've got them both. Bartowski's been tranqed…yeah, she's been no trouble…yeah, I'll have her ditch it right now…" he said and then looked back to find Walker already tossing the burner phone from the window. "…yeah, it's gone…yes ma'am, I'll be at the plane in less than fifteen…yes ma'am, I call again once we're in the air."

"Where are we headed, Casey?" Sarah asked while gently running her fingers through the head of curly hair that was resting in her lap.

"Our last stop will be DC but we're going to take a round-about route to get there so the General will have enough time to set up secure transportation for us. So, Walker, what the hell happened to the nerd?" Casey asked, watching in the rear view mirror as the blonde looked down at the sleeping man in her lap before opening her mouth.

"Well, about…"

**A/N: 2 -**Hope you likey…next time, the trip, the story and a very pissed of CIA Director. JT


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **Howdy, how yall doin…hey, I happen to reside in the south so I believe I'm allowed to use words like howdy and yall…here's a chapter that's chock full of excitement…ok, maybe not chock full…ok, ok, maybe excitement is the wrong word to use but I can at least brag that there's excitement in the A/N…what?…well, there is…fine, you caught me…maybe this chapter will bring you a smile and you'll forgive me for misleading you with the whole 'excitement' thing…I'm currently watching the sky fall(love this Florida weather) and typing instead of selling tires…well, at least I was when I wrote this…crap, daylight and typing simply leads to confusion for me…and now I'm feelin g the need for Jager…before I give in I have to say that I don't own Chuck or anything in the 'Chuckverse'…I don't make money doing this…I make lots of mistakes that go uncorrected because I'm still beta-free…I'm still very appreciative to all of you who have alerted and favorited this or any of my scribbles and I'm immensely grateful to all of you who take the time to review…I'm sorry if I've been lax in replying but your thoughts about my stories do mean a lot to me so…**THANK YOU**… a huge thank you to all of the writers here at FanFiction who provide hours of entertainment and inspiration…and lastly, I owe a debt that can never be repaid to the writer whose encouragement led me to find something that puts a smile on my face…Thanks Jim. _**JT**_

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 8**

The sound of John Casey's voice cut through the daydream she'd been lost in for the last two hours. Looking down at her lap, she caught her traitorous fingers gently running through Chuck's curls…again. The first time she'd caught them mis-behaving, she'd grabbed her phone and started going through the pictures she had archived there, sure that the chore would keep her hands busy. The second time she caught her fingers ignoring her commands was when Casey had passed her on the way to the planes lavatory, grunting out a 'figures'. When the big man was returning to the cockpit, she was once again looking at photos of Bryce and herself that had been taken almost two years earlier while they'd been vacationing in Mexico. Pausing at her elbow, Casey snorted and mumbled 'ah yes, the douche-bag, pre -Intersect' before resuming his journey back to the front of the plane.

Sarah hit the delete icon, not surprised that she felt nothing when the picture disappeared. Spending another five minutes, she deleted one image after another until she found one of Chuck standing behind the Nerdherd desk, his tie hanging loose and a smile on his face as he looked towards the camera. She felt the smile form on her face as she thought back to the day she'd taken the picture and the fake date they'd had that night. Closing her eyes, Agent Sarah Walker replayed that entire evening while her fingers put the phone aside and found their way back to the curls they'd been exploring earlier.

"Walker, we're landing in five minutes so please return your nerd to his upright and secure position" Casey's voice told her from the speaker behind her.

"Yeah, yeah" Sarah mumbled to herself, ignoring Casey's instructions, choosing instead to keep Chuck's head in her lap while she dropped her arm across his chest. Minutes later, a slight bump let her know that Casey had landed without incident, impressing her with the smoothness of the touchdown. She'd offered to take the co-pilot's seat after Casey had dismissed the pilot who'd been waiting with the plane, agreeing with his reasoning that the fewer people who knew where they were, the better. Once airborne, she'd helped him disconnect the aircraft's transponder and then returned to the cabin, pulling a still unconscious Chuck into her lap before settling in for the cross country flight.

She'd been tempted to quiz Casey about his plans, their destination and what would happen once they got there but decided not to push her tenuous status in regard to the NSA, hoping that General Beckman had something in mind that would allow her to stay close to Chuck…as long as he wanted her to be there.

Sarah watched out the window as the small plane was pulled into a hangar and the sliding doors closed as soon as they were inside. Turning away from the window, she was surprised to find Casey standing next to the seats she and Chuck had been occupying.

"Do you mind?" Casey asked, nodding towards her lap.

"What?" she replied before looking down and being shocked to find that her fingers had found their way into Chuck's hair…again. "Sorry" she said, pulling her hands away and watching as Casey effortlessly threw the gangly nerd over his shoulder and turned towards the exit. Getting to her feet, she stretched and then followed, cringing when she was sure that the big man was going to let Chuck's head hit the door frame and then breathing a sigh of relief when the agent managed to avoid any impact.

When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she started towards the black Suburban that was parked near the hangar doors, skidding to a stop when Casey abruptly turned to his right and headed towards a bank of lockers against the wall. She watched as a section of the lockers swung outwards revealing an elevator. After the doors slid open he stepped in and turned around.

"Coming, Walker?"

"Right behind you, Casey."

The ride took longer that Sarah expected and when the doors finally slid open, two stone faced men stood waiting with a gurney, their nearly identical suits giving away their agent status. One of the men stepped forward and offered his hand to Casey.

'Major Casey, it's an honor to meet you sir" the young man said, waiting nervously with his hand held out.

"The rain in Spain" Casey replied, his free hand hovering near his hip.

"What?" the younger of the two agents asked nervously.

"Stays mainly on the nerd" the older of the two agents answered, stepping forward and smacking the younger man on the back of the head before giving Casey a hand securing Chuck to the stretcher. "Damn greenhorn. Sorry Major, I just got him from the farm. Let's get moving, Maxwell. The Major's ride is waiting and the sooner we get moving, the sooner you can get home to Ninetynine."

"Maxwell? Ninetynine?" the younger man asked while grabbing the handle at the foot of the stretcher and starting off down the hallway. "Oh, you're talking about that movie with The Rock and that 40year old virgin dude, right?"

"Oh christ" the older agent mumbled before grabbing the other end of the gurney and moving away without another word.

"Let me guess, Casey, you came up with the verification code" Sarah said as she stepped around the bigger man.

"Yeah, so?" he replied, falling into step behind the blonde, smiling to himself as he pulled his phone from his pocket. After checking for reception, he hit the speed dial. "General, we're on the ground and should be on the road shortly…yes ma'am, he's still unconscious…yes, we should be at the safe house before he wakes up…of course, as soon as he's alert…yes ma'am, I'll make sure that she's there as well" Casey finished and slipped the phone back into his pocket. Looking up he found Sarah staring back over her shoulder. "What?"

"The general wants me there?"

"Yeah, she seems to think you might be of use…and as long as the nerd doesn't ask for a different agent. Maybe he might want to give a brunette a try" Casey answered before moving past her. "I guess you could always go back to your boy Bryce if Bartowski decides he doesn't want Larkin's sloppy seconds" he called over his shoulder before turning back to watch the team in front of him.

"You fucking asshole" Sarah muttered, surprised by how much his comment bothered her. 'Would Chuck really ask for another agent?' she asked herself, suddenly starting to worry about the very real possibility that he might just do that. 'No, he'd never do that' she told herself while she began to make a list of all the reasons that he wouldn't ask for another agent. When she realized that there weren't all that many 'pros' for her list, she began to list the 'cons' and then she started to worry. The sound of someone calling her name snapped her back to reality and she looked up to find everyone waiting for her at the end of the hallway, Casey holding the waiting elevator's doors open. Picking up her pace, she quickly joined the other agents, ignoring Casey's grunt when she stepped to the side of the gurney and looked down at Chuck, reaching out a hand to brush an errant curl back off of his forehead.

Sarah looked up as the elevator doors opened, not surprised to find that they were in another hangar that seemed to be identical to the one they'd just been in. There was an identical black Suburban and an almost identical small plane. The only glaring difference was the Large Mart delivery van that was parked near the back of the hangar. She waited until the two agents headed towards the van before turning to stare at Casey.

"What, no Buymore vans available?" she asked as she fell into step beside Casey. "I always thought those green shirts really made your eyes just pop."

"Very funny, Walker. Maybe, if Chuck wants you to stick around, I tell the nerd to ask that your wear your Weinerlicious outfit…all the time."

"I never you knew you liked that, Casey."

"I couldn't care less, Walker. Unlike you, I don't feel the need to bone my partners so what you wear means nothing to me. I just know that you didn't like the outfit, so…"

"Casey, GFY!" Sarah hissed and then walked away, stepping to the back of the van and waiting while the two agents secured the stretcher inside. Once the two men had exited the van, she climbed in and pulled the sliding door shut behind her. Making herself comfortable, she ignored Casey when he slid behind the wheel, choosing instead to allow her fingers to brush through Chuck's curls…again.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The ride was uneventful and almost an hour after pulling out of the hangar, Sarah watched as Casey pulled into the parking garage of a rather worn down looking apartment building. Moments later the two agents who'd been tailing them from the airfield opened the rear doors of the van and quickly unloaded the stretcher. Sarah followed as the two men led the way up to an apartment on the fourth floor, holding the door while they maneuvered the stretcher through the doorway and then following closely as they wheeled the gurney into the living room. She wanted to offer her help but chose instead to stand back while Chuck was transferred to a rather comfortable looking sofa. Looking around her, she took note of Casey's position just outside the still open front door, his hand never far from his hip while he scanned the hallway.

"Major Casey" the younger agent called, "we'll leave the stretcher in one of the back rooms, in case you need it again."

"Yeah, fine" Casey answered, not bothering to move from his position.

"And then we'll take up our surveillance positions…"

"Yeah, whatever. Listen, don't tell, do" Casey growled before stepping into the apartment after giving the hallway a last look. He stood next to the door and waited until the two agents left the apartment, pulling the door shut behind them. Turning, he made eye-contact with Sarah and held a finger up when it looked like she might have a question. "Not yet" he said softly while crossing the room and bending down to pick Chuck up. "We're moving…I need you to open the door and keep an eye out while we move up one floor. Same room, different floor. The door's unlocked, let's go."

Sarah pulled her pistol from the holster at her hip and opened the door, scanning the hall in much the same way Casey had moments before. Closing the door once the big NSA agent had stepped through, she led the way to the stairwell, continuing to run point until they'd made their way to the room on the next floor. Once inside, she waited until Casey had his arms free before holstering her gun.

"Casey, what's going on?" Sarah asked, wondering about the room change.

"Walker, your boss is pissed. He's issued a warrant for your arrest on kidnapping and obstruction charges."

"Kidnapping?"

"Yeah, evidently you kidnapped Charles Irving Bartowski and since he's wanted as a witness as part of some case Graham is leading, the obstruction of justice charge was a natural addition."

"Are you serious? Chuck's sister would never believe that."

"Walker, Graham doesn't care. If he gets his hands on Bartowski, he can spin the story anyway he wants, that's why we're taking all of these precautions. The General wanted me to cut you loose but I reminded her that the moron seemed to have some feelings for you so she decided to wait until she'd had the chance to talk to Bartowski before making any decision…you're welcome by the way."

"Thanks?"

"Yeah, whatever. Judging by the dart you pulled out, I'd guess we've got at least another four hours before sleeping beauty wakes up so you might want to use the time to figure out if you want to stick around or if you want to turn yourself into the CIA. Maybe Graham will let things slide and give you back to Larkin."

"Casey, Bryce got me shot so I have no desire to go back to working with that fuck-up. I'll wait and see what happens and if Chuck doesn't want me around, well, I guess I'll have to wait and see."

"So, the rumors are true then. Larkin couldn't handle the Intersect."

"Yeah, they're true. He thought he was god's gift to espionage but he ended up doing more harm than good. I tried to get him help but he had everyone convinced he was ok…he wasn't, and some good people paid for his out of control ego."

"I never liked that tool. I'm gonna take a walk, just check things out. Relax but don't open the door for anyone. I've got a key so no one gets in. No one! You wanna keep an eye on…ah, what the hell am I asking that for? I'll be back" he finished, opening the door and stepping into the hall after taking a quick look.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Sarah had been sitting on the edge of the sofa when Chuck finally started to stir and she'd quickly moved to a nearby chair, hoping her relief wasn't glaringly easy to see. Once she saw his eyes open, she stood up and went to the kitchen, returning with a glass of ice water and a couple of pain-relievers, offering them to him when his eyes finally focused and he managed to sit up.

"Agent Walker, may I ask what happened?" he said after taking the offered caplets and washing them down.

"You stepped in front of a tranq dart that was meant for me."

"Really? Wow, I guess that explains this monster headache and the horrible taste in my mouth" Chuck said while slowly looking around, taking in his surroundings. "How long was I out and, if you don't mind me asking, Agent Walker, where am I?"

"You've been out for almost ten hours, Chuck. As to where you are, I'm not exactly sure. You're in a NSA safe house, or more accurately, an apartment, somewhere on the east coast. Casey should be back any minute now and once you're feeling up to it, General Beckman is anxious to talk to you. I'm guessing that you're hungry and if you'd like I can check the kitchen and find you something to eat."

"I've been kidnapped?"

"No, of course not…well, ok, technically you could say that, but General Beckman thought this was the best way to prevent Director Graham from getting his hands on you and once we get things straightened out I'm sure the kidnapping charges will get dropped…"

"What kidnapping charges, Agent Walker?"

"Well, director Graham has accused me of kidnapping you and of obstruction of justice because you're an important witness in a case…"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Chuck asked while struggling to get to his feet, fighting against a bout of dizziness and losing, falling back onto the couch.

"Chuck, please, just give it a few minutes. You'll feel better soon and once Casey gets back, we'll contact the General."

"What about my sister? Has anyone talked to Ellie? She's probably really worried and…"

"Chuck, calm down. I called Ellie after we took off and told her I was going to 'kidnap' you and take you on a mini-vacation. She thought it was a great idea and made me promise to take good care of you…and to take pictures of where ever we ended up."

"Thanks, Agent Walker, I…"

"Chuck" Sarah interrupted, "you don't have to keep calling me Agent Walker. Please, call me Sarah or if you don't like that you could call me…"

"Walker!" Casey's voice cut in as he hurried in through the door with the two agents who'd helped with moving Chuck, hot on his heels, both of them with their pistols drawn. "We've got company. We've got to move…now!" he barked out, taking in the now conscious nerd. "He gonna be able to move without help?"

"Chuck?" Sarah asked, stepping forward and offering her hand, hoping he'd managed to recover enough to move.

"Yeah" he answered, getting to his feet without taking her hand, shaking his head as he swayed a little "I'm good to go."

Before Casey could say anything else, the sound of gunfire erupted and the two agents standing in the doorway both ducked into the room, slamming the door behind them.

"Major, I counted six coming this way. I signaled the rest of team and we've got chopper inbound. We need to get to the roof. I'd suggest using the fire escape…"

"Lead the way" Casey replied while pulling his phone from his pocket, "we'll be right behind you."

"Let's go" the older agent told his younger counterpart, already moving towards the window.

Chuck started to move to follow but Casey's hand on his arm stopped him.

"Casey?" Sarah asked, wondering why they weren't scrambling to get to the roof.

"No questions. Follow me" he replied, heading towards the back of the apartment. Once in one of the back bedrooms, he threw open a closet door and reached in, his fingers feeling along the bottom edge of a shelf until he found whatever he'd been looking for. A soft clicking sound echoed throughout the empty room and a small hatch popped open, revealing a set of stairs leading down. Without waiting and offering no explanation, Casey dropped down the hole. Moments later, he called up, urging Sarah to cover their backs while telling Chuck to watch his footing but to climb as fast as he could.

Minutes later, Sarah finally reached the bottom of the stairs and looked around, not surprised to find they were in the parking garage. She noted that Casey had assumed a defensive stance with his gun pointed at two people who were standing next to a plain looking Impala, their guns held at their sides. Pulling her own weapon, she stepped forward, moving herself in between the unknown pair and Chuck.

"What've we got, Casey?"

"Our ride…but I don't like the drivers."

"Perhaps you should drop your guns" Sarah said, her voice cold and demanding leaving no doubt that her suggestion was anything but.

Just as the pair lowered their guns to the pavement, three matching black Suburbans pulled into the parking area and a handful of similarly dressed men poured out, all of them aiming guns at the two people who'd just dropped their weapons. The sound of silenced shots was followed by the unknown pair slumping to the ground, small darts protruding from their necks.

"Let's go!" a woman's voice called from the open rear window of the middle vehicle. "Now!" the voice added, sounding impatient.

"Grab the nerd!" Casey commanded while slowly looking around again before following Sarah and Chuck towards the vehicle.

"C'mon, Chuck" Sarah said as she pulled him towards the rear door, pausing briefly to let him climb in first before following. She watched as John Casey climbed into the front seat, slamming the door once he'd taken his seat.

"Well, are you going to close the door, Walker?" the voice asked, causing her to curse silently while pulling the door shut. "Let's get moving" the woman spoke towards the driver who immediately started following the vehicle in front of him. "Well, Chuck, are you ready to come to work for the NSA?"

"General Beckman?" both Chuck and Sarah asked at the same time, both finally realizing who they were riding with.

"Well, kidnapper and kidnapee…this should be an interesting meeting." General Diane Beckman said, surprising the pair when she actually smiled…a little.

**A/N: 2 -** Next time…the meeting…the gun battle…the amazing, high speed chase…a really pissed off CIA director…and another smile from General Diane Beckman(really). As always, here I am, begging for a little of your valuable time in the form of a review. Thanks in advance. JT

**A/N: 3 **- The log is back? What the fuck? It's the holidays and they do this? Well, time for all Shaters to unite! Write a Shnuff fic and if you don't mind I'll add it to my community! If you just hate the log and choose not to write, now is the perfect time to re-visit the community dedicated to the dismemberment and/or death of Daniel Shaw! Join the fun! Happy Holidays to all and to all, many happy deaths of the log...yeah, not sure if that sentiment will ever make a Hallmark card...but it should. (comig soon, my story of Daniel Shaw as a medical miracle...really, I read that doctors are now performinmg fecal transplants and that the procedure actually makes people feel better...finally something Shaw can contribute to that will help mankind...just keep him locked away, the world's perfect, living, donor...as long as they use really large, red hot implements to extract the needed material...and maybe hammers to help...just a thought) JT


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: **As always, I hope you find this latest collection of scribbles enjoyable. Hopefully everyone had a nice holiday and will start the new year with fun and frivolity…I want to express my gratitude to all of you who have added this or any of my stories to your alert or favorite list. I'm even more appreciative of those of you who have taken the time to offer your opinions on my stuff by hitting that review doo-hickey…let's see…yeah, I don't own Chuck or anything in the official 'Chuckverse'…I don't make any money doing this(the whole writing thing)…and any and all mistakes are entirely my own…that's right, I do this without the guidance of a beta…finally, as I always do, I'll urge you to leave a review because your thoughts about what I've written are important to me…good or bad, I want to hear what you think…fear not, at this point in my personal evolution(stunted though it may be) you won't hurt my feelings or bruise my ego if you tell me just how much you dislike what you read….so, please, leave that review…and now for something completely different…a shout out to a few readers and writers who've gifted me with a smile or two…Oldestman, CHAS58, Prince Boo Boo, ybgsm, tw200, esardi, batty02,ChuckReader...just to name a few…and to Astrid and ( ) for taking the time to review…I have always accepted anonymous reviews but I can only PM to those who actually sign their names… I'm still having fun so, thanks for the nudge, Jim. - **JT**

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 9**

Chuck sat in stunned silence, not even noticing when Sarah leaned across him, grabbed his seat belt and buckled him in. He'd never imagined that General Diane Beckman could smile and the event had left him more convinced than ever that he'd stumbled into an alternate universe.

"Mr. Bartowski?" the General asked, turning a questioning look at Sarah when she didn't get a response.

"Chuck?" Sarah asked, reaching for and giving his hand a soft squeeze.

"Mr. Bartowski?" the General repeated and then leaned forward, gently thumping the end of his nose before leaning back into her seat.

"What?" Chuck spluttered, blinking his eyes several times while lifting his hand to touch the tip of his nose.

"Welcome back, Mr. Bartowski. I'm so glad you could join us" Diane Beckman offered, making no effort to keep the mirth from her voice or hide a second smile that was even bigger than the first.

"Did I miss something funny?" Chuck asked, looking first to Sarah and then back to the diminutive, red headed woman sitting across from him.

"No, Chuck" Sarah answered from behind her hand, which did nothing to hide the smile in her eyes, "you just zoned out there, for a minute or two."

"Ok, fine. General, where are we…and I don't just mean geographically" Chuck said after giving Sarah a quick pout that he was sure didn't affect her at all.

"Well, Mr. Bartowski, we're on our way to my office. Due to Director Graham's attempts to 'recruit' you" the General replied, using her fingers to emphasize her opinion of her counter-part's actions, "I thought it best if I was present when Agent Casey brought you in for our talk."

"And Sar…Agent Walker?"

"Well, due to her current status as a wanted criminal since she 'kidnapped' you, I thought it best if I took her into 'custody' until we get everything straightened out. Now, if you don't mind me asking, what happened?" the General said while glancing at the cast on his arm and the bandage on his forehead.

"Well, evidently, I uh, I fainted and I didn't have a , uh, a good landing" Chuck responded, his cheeks flushing faintly.

"I see. Are you in pain?"

"No ma'am…not really."

"Alright. Now, about the reason I agreed to this meeting. The NSA would like to…"

"General, we may have a problem" Casey's voice announced from the front of the vehicle, interrupting her.

"What's happening, Major Casey?"

"The tail vehicle reports that three vehicles have taken up flanking positions while the lead vehicle reports that two semi-trailers have begun to move into possible blocking positions. Orders?" the big man rattled off, turning to make eye contact with his boss.

"One minute, Major" the General replied while pulling a phone from her pocket, After tapping a quick sequence on the screen, she held the phone away from her, making it easy for everyone in the vehicle to hear when Director Langstom Graham answered.

"Yes Diane, what can I do for you?"

"You can call your people off. I'm sitting here with Mr. Bartowski and any attempt to remove him from this vehicle will have very serious repercussions."

"I don't have a clue what you're talking about, Diane" the director's voice answered, his voice easy to hear.

Chuck happened to glance out the rear window just as the third vehicle in their miniature convoy suddenly swerved across two lanes of traffic and slid off the highway. Just as he was about to say something, Casey's voice announced the loss of the vehicle.

"Langstom, don't fuck with me! Call your people off and hope that none of my agents in that vehicle they just forced off the highway were injured because if…"

"Diane, I'm telling you that I don't have any of my people on you right now. I don't like admitting it but Major Casey lost my agents in California. Whoever is targeting you, they're not mine."

"General" Casey's voice called out just as a car pulled up beside them and began crowding in against the side of the Suburban. Before anyone could say another word, the sound of gunfire, followed by the dull echoes of bullets hitting armor plating filled the interior.

"Diane, are you under fire?" Director Langstom Graham's voice asked with genuine concern. "I'm scrambling a team right now. Agent Walker, I apologize for the mix up. Consider the charges dropped. Give Major Casey whatever help you can until…" the sound of Director Graham's voice suddenly cut off and the General pulled the phone to her, looking closely at the display.

"Someone's jamming us" Casey's voice announced from the front of the vehicle as another car closed in on the other side of the vehicle, "and we've got more company" he added just as the sound of more gunfire echoed through the cab.

"Jesus, General, what the hell is going on?" Chuck asked, doing his best to keep the growing panic from showing in his voice. "Why would Director Graham have his agents firing on us?"

"He wouldn't, Chuck. Whoever is behind this, it's not Graham. Agent Walker…" she said, turning her attention to the blonde,"…you need to keep Mr. Bartowski safe. Take whatever you need" she added while pulling open the seat back next to her to reveal a small arsenal. Reaching in, General Diane Beckman pulled out a 1916 Colt, dropped the magazine into her hand and after a quick inspection, slammed it back into place and racked a round into the chamber.

Just as Sarah leaned forward to retrieve a handgun, something rammed into the rear of the suburban and slammed her back against the seat. Chuck watched as Sarah shook her head before repeating her motions, this time successfully. Going through the same motions as the General, her eyes met his after she'd loaded her weapon and after seeing her give him a quick smile, he turned around to look towards Casey. Not believing his eyes, he watched out the windshield as the lead vehicle was forced off the road.

"There!" Casey said, pointing towards the far lane and grunting in approval when the older agent behind the wheel gunned the engine and swerved towards the open space. The sudden movement caught the driver of the car on the left side unaware and when the Suburban's rear bumper clipped the other vehicle's front end, the car spun out of control, blowing a front tire and then rolling over several times before coming to rest against the concrete barrier.

"Holy crap" Chuck mumbled to himself after watching the action through the side windows, half expecting to see the wrecked car burst into flame before remembering the episode of Myth Busters that suggested that most of the 'car exploding' stuff he'd seen in movies wasn't what actually happened. Shaking his head, he looked out the rear window and before he could shout a warning, the pursuing car rammed into them again, this time causing the back end of the Suburban to sway dangerously before their driver got the vehicle back under control.

"General, we've might have another problem" Casey announced, his eyes watching a rapidly approaching spot in the sky.

"Major?"

"Chopper, ma'am"

"Crap!" the General replied, leaning to her side so she could look out the windshield at the approaching craft, her concerned look leaving no doubt that she hadn't been expecting any airborne support.

By the time Chuck had turned around to watch, the helicopter had opened fire and he was sure they were about to die. He turned to his side, ready to say his goodbyes to Sarah when the vehicle behind them suddenly fell away, it's hood flying open and smashing back against the cars windshield while black smoke started pouring from the engine compartment.

"Holy shit!" Chuck blurted out when the realization struck that their pursuers had been taken out of the equation by the helicopter which had banked behind them and was now heading towards the third car which was still on their right side. Watching as the guns mounted on the craft's sides started firing, he suddenly felt sickened when he saw the driver's head seemingly come apart and a red mist coat the inside of the windows before the car gently bumped against the Suburban and then veered violently away, crossing two lanes of traffic before lodging itself under the rear wheels of one of the semi-trailers that had been drawing closer to them.

As soon as they pulled away from the final car that was now a tangled mass under the semi's rear tires, Sarah's phone started ringing. Glancing down at the display, she looked up and offered a shrug towards the General. "Director Graham" she said and tapped the display before holding the phone out in her palm.

"Agent Walker, what the hell is going on out there?" Director Graham's voice filled the suddenly quiet interior.

"I'm not sure, sir. Is the helicopter that just showed up one of yours?"

"Yes. What's the situation?"

"We lost our two escort vehicles and have taken a serious pounding but it appears that we're still mobile. There is one semi-trailer that is falling behind but your people appear to have given us breathing room" Sarah answered, looking first to her left and offering Chuck a tight smile before locking eyes with General Diane Beckman who appeared to be listening intently while tapping rapidly on her own phone.

"That is good news. Diane? I don't suppose I could offer you an escort to CIA headquarters?"

"Not that I don't appreciate the assist, but I think I'd rather postpone the meeting for a couple of days. I want to make sure that Mr. Bartowski has a chance to get some rest before we sit down and discuss the new Intersect project" the General said while shocking Chuck for a third time when she winked at him. "I'll call you as soon as Mr. Bartowski is ready" she finished.

"I have a team on the ground who should be taking care of the final vehicle as we speak and the air support will accompany you to your destination. Agent Walker?"

"Yes sir" Sarah answered, wondering what would happen next.

"Please continue with your fine work keeping Mr. Bartowski safe" he said before ending the call without another word.

"What the hell?" Sarah mumbled under her breath before turning to look at Chuck.

"So, I guess I'm not 'kidnapped' anymore?"

"It would appear not, Mr. Bartowski" the General answered. "Major, what is our status?"

"It appears that the other semi has decided to withdraw" Casey replied, "and the helicopter has assumed a flanking position. Agent…uh?" he added, turning and looking at the older man behind the wheel.

"Chas, sir" the driver answered, "we've taken serious body damage but everything appears to be holding together. We shouldn't have any problem getting the General to her destination, sir" he finished, his eyes never leaving the road.

"Thank you, Agent Chas" the General replied, "hell of a trip for your last day."

"Yes ma'am" the older agent said with a chuckle. "I have to say it's always been…interesting, working for you, General."

"I'm glad I was able to keep you on your toes" Diane Beckman said while un-cocking the gun in her hand and thumbing the safety before placing the pistol on the seat at her side. "So, Mr. Bartowski, are you enjoying your first day with the NSA?" the general asked with a smirk.

Chuck sat dumbfounded, sure that his mouth was probably hanging open. "Uh…I, uh…can I get back to you on that, General, once we get where we're going?" he finally managed to choke out and then thought his head might implode when the tiny woman chuckled after replying, 'certainly, Chuck' before picking her phone up and placing a call. Turning his head to look at Sarah, he couldn't help returning the smile she offered after giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Chuck had just gotten undressed, wrapped a towel around his waist and was about to climb into the shower when someone knocked at the door. Thinking it was Casey, returning with the fresh bandage he'd requested, he opened the door and stepped back quickly when he found Sarah standing in the hallway with a tray of food.

"Uh, hi? I thought you might be hungry" Sarah said as she stepped around the nearly naked nerd, moving across the small room and setting the tray down on the bed before pulling the chair out from the desk and sitting down. Trying to not smile at the blush that seemed to cover his entire upper body, she gestured towards the plastic bag in his hand. "Need some help wrapping your cast?" she asked and waited while Chuck seemed to fight against his obvious embarrassment. After waiting for a minute and not getting an answer, she got up, grabbed the plastic bag and moved to stand in front of her once and future asset. Keeping her eyes on his, she reached out and slipped the bag over the cast, securing it with some tape.

"Uh, thanks" Chuck finally managed to get out.

"Would you mind if I wait? That way we can share the food" she said, gesturing towards the tray she'd set on the bed moments earlier. Waiting for an answer, she reached up and gently peeled the bandage from his forehead, wincing when she looked at the stitches that closed the cut. "No redness around the sutures which means your healing nicely. We'll leave it uncovered, just try to not soak it too much when you shower. Ok?"

"What? Oh, sorry, didn't mean to zone out there. Yeah, that would be fine" Chuck answered, moving towards the bathroom.

Sarah gave up the fight and allowed herself to smile while she watched Chuck's back as he moved away from her. 'Not bad' she told herself, as she allowed her eyes to drop from his shoulders to his ass, the towel doing very little to stop her imagination. 'Maybe you should offer to wash his back for him' she told herself, 'after all, the cast probably makes it hard to reach everything' she continued her inner conversation, already on her feet and moving around the bed. Just as she watched her hand reaching for the door knob, she regained control of the same mutinous appendage that she'd caught playing with his curls during the flight from California. 'Just sit down' she told herself and started to turn around to move back to the bed when she happened to look down and found her hand reaching for the door knob…again. 'Oh no you don't' she said to the hand that she just couldn't seem to control, turning quickly and making her way to the far side of the bed where she forced herself to sit down to wait.

Time seemed to crawl as she listened to the sound of running water, her mind running wild with images of Chuck standing in front of her in his towel and then images of him without a towel. Just as she began to picture herself helping him shampoo his hair and then washing his back and then, just as she began to imagine help him wash other things, the object of her daydreams was gently shaking her shoulder.

"Chuck!" she blurted out, jumping almost six inches to the side "You startled me" she added, worried that he would notice the blush that she was sure was coloring her cheeks and figure out what she'd been thinking about. Getting to her feet, she moved towards the door. "I forgot to bring something to drink" she said, opening the door and disappearing into the hallway.

"What the…?" Chuck asked the now empty room. Turning to look down at the tray on the bed, he noticed the two small bottles of Gatorade and wondered what Sarah had been talking about. Shaking his head, he looked around and realized that even though he was now clean, he only had the clothes he'd been wearing since that morning. Just as he was about to grab his jeans, John Casey appeared in the still open door with a small bundle in his arms.

"Where's Walker" the big man asked, stepping into the room and tossing the bundle onto the bed.

"She went to get us something to drink" Chuck answered while looking through the clothes that Casey had brought.

"Huh" Casey responded after looking at the food tray. "Whatever. The General wants a meeting in an hour. I'll be back."

Before he could say a word, he was once again alone. Grabbing the package of brand new boxers along with the sweat pants and a pair of socks, Chuck went back into the bathroom. Once he'd gotten dressed, he walked back into the main room and found Sarah once again sitting on the bed, two more Gatorade bottles sitting on the tray. Picking up the sweat shirt, he started to wiggle into the garment, he was surprised when a second set of hands offered assistance, making it much easier to get the cast through the sleeve. As soon as he pulled the garment over his head, he opened his eyes and found himself staring into a pair of brilliant blue eyes.

"Peek-a-boo?" Sarah said with a smile, staring into Chuck's brown eyes. Before she could stop it, the hand she'd been having trouble with all day long reached up and gently pushed a handful of curls up and off of his forehead. Without breaking eye contact, she took the bandage she'd been holding in her other hand and smoothed it across the line of stitches. "Ellie's friend did great work. There won't be much of a scar."

"Really? I was sorta hoping for one of those manly scars that drive all the women crazy."

"You want a scar?"

"Well, only if it makes me look roguishly handsome…like a an international nerd of mystery" Chuck said, Sarah's blue eyes leading him to babble.

"You're already handsome, Chuck. You don't need a scar for that" Sarah replied, surprised when she felt her body starting to lean forwards. 'What are you doing?' she asked herself but got no answer.

"Sarah, I…" Chuck started but couldn't say another word due to the soft pair of lips that suddenly captured his. His eyes watched as the blue eyes he'd been staring into darkened and then slowly closed. Following her example, he closed his own eyes and let his other senses take over. The taste of cherries from her lip gloss. The faint scent of vanilla which he attributed to her shampoo. He could feel her pressed against him while her hands played with the hair at the back of his neck. Rounding out the senses, he could swear he heard his heart hammering in his chest and he could definitely hear footsteps…footsteps? 'What the hell?' he asked himself, wondering why he would be hearing footsteps.

"Ahem!" a voice came from the doorway. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything" General Diane Beckman asked. "I thought we might start the meeting early. Will that be a problem?"

**A/N:2 **See you cats and kittens soon. BLDBAL, TRFW, SVTSS and CLM are all in various states of development. Next? I'm gonna take another brief side step for another chapter of Castle:The Bucket List.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: **Hello everybody…glad you had the patience to stick around. This chapter rewrote itself three times…hope it works. Not really in a rambling mood…lucky you. As always, the usual disclaimers apply…don't own, don't earn, don't beta…still having fun so… thanks Jim. Your thoughts are always welcome and if you haven't yet, take the time to take part in the 'Awesome' awards nominations and voting. You are the ones who read the stories here and you can take a little time and let the authors, who's stories you enjoy reading, know that you appreciate their efforts._** JT**_

**Previously in this story…ah, ok, I'll do it…a Flashback flashback, if you will…**

General Diane Beckman walked in on our 'heroes'… "I thought we might start the meeting early. Will that be a problem?"

And now…

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 10**

_Chuck's POV : _'Shit…this could be a problem.'

_Sarah's POV : _'Shit…this could be a problem.'

_General Diane Beckman's POV : _'Shit…this could be a problem.'

The silence in the room seemed to stretch as the three occupants took turns looking from one to another, each of them waiting for someone to bite the bullet and be the first to speak. Chuck could feel the heat from Sarah's body because she hadn't moved, except to remove her lips from his and allow her arms to fall to her sides, since the General had walked in on them.

"General" Chuck said after clearing his throat and stumbling on the courage to break the silence that had enveloped them, "I, uh, this was all my fault" he announced, squaring his shoulders and, after a quick glance at the blonde standing at his side, locking his gaze on the diminutive woman who stood frozen in the open doorway.

"How is 'this' all your fault, Mr. Bartowski?" the General asked, her left eyebrow quirking upwards as she struggled to keep a smile from breaking free, actually looking forward to hearing how the young man, standing in front of her and seeming to radiate nervousness, would explain his responsibility for the scene she'd walked in on.

"Well, uh, I couldn't help myself and I, uh, I kissed Sar…uh, Agent Walker…against her will….uh, ma'am" Chuck said, hoping the General wouldn't notice the sweat that he was sure was now springing from his forehead.

"So, Mr. Bartowski, let me see if I have this right. You, using your one good arm" she started, her eyes dropping briefly to the cast that encased his broken arm, "managed to force your affections on one of the CIA's best agents, and this highly trained agent wasn't able to fight you off. Am I to understand that a woman, who knows close to a hundred ways to disarm and kill an opponent, was overcome by you and then allowed you to ravish her lips and leave her blushing and panting like a teenager who'd just been felt up on her first date? Is that what you're claiming the ability to do, Mr. Bartowski? Because if that's the case, I'm going to have to make sure that you're kept a safe distance from my niece" she finished, doing an amazing job of holding in the smile that had been itching to emerge.

"Well, uh, yes ma'am" Chuck's answer sounding suspiciously like a question.

"Really? Perhaps you should demonstrate this amazing skill, Mr. Bartowski. I'm guessing that someone with your training and ability won't mind kissing an older woman. I am a naturally curious woman and would really appreciate a demonstration of the skill and training that you used to overcome Agent Walker's self-defense abilities. It's been a few years since I've had to re-certify in hand to hand but I'll certainly give it the ole college try" the much shorter woman said as she walked into the room, stopping when she was less than two feet from Chuck. "Well, I'm waiting, Mr. Bartowski" the General announced, staring up into the brown eyes that seemed to be drowning in confusion, fear and, most amusing of all, embarrassment.

"I, uh, I…" Chuck stammered, wanting to take a step back but finding his legs against the room's bed which made fleeing, while not impossible, at the very least awkward.

"General, it was my fault" Sarah said as she stepped to the side, interposing herself between the director of the NSA and the man who had quite literally kissed her senseless. She felt Chuck's sudden loss of balance and fought against her urge to turn and make sure he was alright, trusting that he'd be able to sit down, all by himself. "I encouraged his behavior, and did nothing to prevent his advances. I also…uh…I"

"You what, Agent Walker? You used your agency honed, feminine wiles and seduced this poor, defenseless young man? Should I find another agent who can make sure that you don't take advantage of this poor, helpless…"

"Hey!" Chuck interrupted, getting to his feet and peering over Sarah's shoulder. "I'm not some poor, helpless…"

"Oh shut up!" General Diane Beckman barked while reaching out a hand and pushing Sarah backwards which, due to the fact that the blonde agent was standing very close to a certain curly haired nerd, resulted in the pair both sitting down on the bed, leaving Sarah pleasantly surprised when she realized she was actually sitting in Chuck's lap.

"Ma'am?" Sarah asked, unsure what she should do about the strange but pleasurable position she was currently in.

Taking a step back, the older woman gave a the room a quick once over and took note of the tray of food that was sitting near the foot of the bed. "I see that you haven't finished your food so I'm going to return to my office and I expect to see both of you within the next hour. Agent Walker, I need you to ask yourself if you are going to be able to do your job if you find Mr. Bartowski to be so irresistible" she asked and then held a hand up to stall the response that she could see Sarah was ready to blurt out. "I don't need an answer right this second. I want you to give my question serious consideration because, if the attack on the interstate showed us anything, it's that we're not the only people who understand just how important Mr. Bartowski is."

"Yes ma'am" Sarah replied, the sudden serious turn in the conversation reminding her just how close they'd come to losing Chuck just a few hours earlier. Moving slowly, she extricated herself from Chuck's lap, moving to the side but keeping her thigh in contact with his.

"General, what about…" Chuck started but was quickly fell silent.

"I've already arranged for a detail to watch the protection detail that the CIA has posted on your sister and her fiancé" the General interjected, answering Chuck's question before he could finish asking it. "I've spoken to Director Graham and we actually agreed on something concerning you, that the safety of your family is extremely important to the possible success of this project but I'm still unhappy with the attempt that he made to 'recruit' you and decided that I wanted to make sure that there aren't any more 'mis-understandings' about you and yours. I'll explain more when the two of you finish your meal and make your way to my office" she added and then turned and walked towards the still open door.

Pausing at the doorway, she turned back, "Chuck, do I need to take a page from my sister's "rules of dating' and tell you that you need to leave the door open if you're having a 'girl' over to visit? It seemed to work with my niece…"

"No ma'am. We'll be fine" Chuck answered with a small smile. "I promise to turn down the charm so that Sar…Agent Walker won't be tempted again."

"Thank you so much for that. Your government appreciates any efforts you can make towards helping Agent Walker control her baser desires" the General answered, making no effort to hide the sarcasm or the smirk on her face before turning and leaving the room, quickly disappearing into the hallway, the rapidly fading echo of her heels on the floor leaving the only sign that she'd been there at all.

"Ow!" Chuck cried softly, rubbing his shoulder where Sarah had just punched him.

"You're going to 'turn down the charm so I won't be tempted again'?"

"Well, I did promise…ow!"

"Eat your food and don't say another word about turning down you charm or you might find that you need another cast"

"Yes ma'am" Chuck answered while giving his lunch companion the 'puppy dog eyes', as his sister often referred to his special pout that used to get him out of almost any trouble he'd gotten himself into when he was younger.

"I thought you said you were going to turn down the charm, Chuck" Sarah replied with a frown that didn't carry any power at all. "Eat your food, so we can go and see what the General has in mind."

"Yes ma'am."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Agent Sarah Walker and Chuck Bartowski had been cooling their heels in the small waiting room for almost thirty minutes, waiting patiently for their meeting with General Diane Beckman. They'd arrived ten minutes early and been greeted by a stern faced young woman who made a very obvious show of stopping whatever she'd been doing, gestured towards the scattered chairs and then, without waiting to see if the visitors bothered taking a seat, turned back to the work she'd been in the middle of before being interrupted.

Once they'd taken a seat, Chuck had looked to Sarah and been rewarded with a brief shrug of her shoulders before she reached out blindly and picked up the magazine that was closest to her. Looking down at the magazines remaining on the table, he scanned the titles and then snorted when he noticed the 'Jonas Brothers Special Edition of People Magazine that was surrounded by several issues of 'Better Guns and Bunkers' and "Death to Hippies' types of magazines.

"Shhhhh" Sarah hissed at him with a 'death' glare that quickly morphed into a smile when she saw him pick up the 'Jonas Brothers' magazine and pantomime being a love struck fan who was thrilled to be holding the magazine in his hands and couldn't control himself as he bounced happily in his seat. She didn't say anything aloud but she was happy to see that Chuck hadn't taken the news that his sister and her fiancé might be in a position where they could be used as bargaining chips.

They'd finished their food before finding their way to General Beckman's office and during the meal, she kept expecting Chuck to freak out about Ellie and Devon but had been surprised when he kept the conversation light, even going so far as to tease her about the General having the hots for him and suggesting that she might have competition for his kissing abilities. She'd giggled and then, moving with surprising speed, had grabbed his earlobe, drew him in for a quick but heated kiss and then released him just as quickly.

"Do you think the General kisses like that?" she'd asked, smiling at the stunned look on his face, pretty sure it was the result of the kiss and not the question. "You are, of course, welcome to find out but I'm pretty sure that your 'charms' won't work as successfully with her as they seem to work on me."

"So, Agent Walker" Chuck said, his voice bringing her back to the waiting room, "more of a New Kids fan than Jonas Brothers?"

"New who?"

"Yeah, I guess I should've taken your advanced years into consideration?" Chuck teased her, the smile on his face taking any sting out of the remark.

"Shut up, you big doofus" Sarah hissed and had just grabbed Chuck's earlobe when the main door of the office swung open and Major John Casey, wearing his trademark scowl, all but stomped into the room.

"I 'm sure the General will be thrilled to see you abusing the moron, Walker" the big man said before making eye contact with the receptionist and then easing into one of the empty seats.

"Casey?" Chuck asked, holding out the magazine that he'd been teasing Sarah about.

"Very funny, numbnuts" Casey growled after glancing at the object in Chuck's hand. Ignoring the offered reading material, he selected the latest issue of 'Beautiful Explosions' and leaned back into the chair, his attention now focused on the magazine in his hands.

"I'm guessing they're after your time…way after" Chuck replied. I guess they didn't really have boy bands in the eighties, right Casey? So, let me guess…Culture Club?"

"Shut it, Bartowski" Casey grunted, "before I break your other arm."

"Did you see that, Agent Walker? I mentioned Culture Club and Casey flinched. He must have been a real big Boy George fan. You know, I could see him wearing one of those colorful mu-mus with hair extensions and make-up " Chuck announced in a stage whisper and then whipped his head around when he heard a snort from the direction of the receptionist.

"Bartowski, don't imagine, for one minute, that the fact that we're sitting this close, the General will…"

"The General 'will' what, Major Casey?" the woman in question asked, having appeared in the waiting room as if by magic and interrupted the big man in mid-threat.

"Nothing , ma'am, nothing at all" Casey said, getting quickly to his feet and tossing the magazine he'd been leafing through, back onto the table.

"That's good to hear, Major. Now" she continued, turning her gaze to Chuck and Sarah, "if you're done teasing the Major, Mr. Bartowski, perhaps you and Agent Walker could follow me?" the General asked and without waiting for an answer, turned and walked back into her office.

"Grab your boy toy, Walker. I'll be right behind you" the big man barked at them. "Let's find out what the hell is going on."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Chuck Bartowski watched as countless tourists moved back and forth around him, all of them lost in their own world, climbing and descending the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to either side of him. Glancing down at his wristwatch, he was surprised to find that he'd been sitting just below the top step for almost four hours, lost in thought as he considered all of the information that had been revealed during the meeting in General Beckman's office.

Besides the NSA's offer to become an operative once he accepted the new Intersect download, there had been much discussion about how to make sure that his sister and her fiancé were kept safe. The two most likely scenarios were to either fake his death and then move them into witsec or to offer them both medical positions with the NSA. Chuck had insisted that they have the choice and even managed to get the General to throw in full re-payment of their student loans, no matter which choice they made.

The meeting had lasted almost three hours and had included a brief video conference with Director Graham who had smiled…twice, while he spoke glowingly about the bright future ahead for the 'joint NSA-CIA project' and the tremendous benefit it would be to the people of the United States. He managed to avoid any mention of his attempted 'recruitment' of Chuck and Agent Sarah Walker's short stint atop the CIA's 'most wanted' list when she'd 'kidnapped' him.

General Beckman almost cracked him up when she'd curled the fingers on her right hand towards her thumb and made a up and down motion off to the side, out of Director Graham's line of sigh, while rolling her eyes when her counter-part had spoken of the 'new era' of co-operation between the two agencies. Once the video link had been severed, Chuck had immediately asked the General how much she trusted Director Graham and had been surprised by her answer. He'd figured she would warn him about trusting Graham but had been shocked when he was encouraged to have faith in the Director's belief and support of the Intersect project.

The General saw the look of disbelief on his face and went into great detail about Graham's years of service and explained that although she might not like the man all that much, she'd put her life in his hands if called upon to do so.

"We might approach our jobs from completely different angles" she'd gone on to explain, "but I'd stake my life on Langstom Graham's loyalty. He might have tried to 'recruit' you using the 'stick' instead of the 'carrot' but that doesn't mean he would ever willingly cause you harm, Chuck" she'd added before pulling out a rather thick file and sliding it across her desk to rest in front of him.

"General" he'd asked after noticing the first words on the first page…_The undersigned, Charles Irving Bartowski…_"what is this?"

"That's just a standard NSA contract that I'd like you to read through and then sign" she answered, holding out a pen.

"General, this thing has got to be half an inch thick" he replied incredulously.

"Well, because time really is of the essence, I took the liberty of going with the short form."

He'd looked first at Sarah and then at Casey who both simply nodded, Sarah adding a small smile. After shaking his head, he'd explained that he needed a little time to think about 'things' and asked if he could step outside to get some air. The general had simply nodded and handed him a card, telling him to call her whenever he was ready to get started or if he had any questions that they hadn't covered in the meeting.

He simply nodded and then got to his feet. When Sarah stood to join him, he'd apologized but asked her if he could have some time to himself. He'd noticed the brief flash of disappointment that was quickly covered with a tight smile and an "ok Chuck, whatever you need".

He'd left the office and, after walking and then a short cab ride, he found himself sitting on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. The four hours that followed were a filled with questions, lots and lots of questions, the biggest of which was what he would do about Ellie and Devon.

"Figured anything out yet, Chuck?" Sarah's voice asked softly and he turned to his left, not too surprised to find the beautiful blonde sitting one step above him.

"These steps are definitely harder…and colder than the sand" he answered, reminding Sarah of the last time she'd been witness to a thoughtful Chuck. "Casey?"

"He's got a jet waiting so we can fly to Burbank."

"You know what my answer is? What, is mind reading part of your training and, if so, please forgive me for those thoughts I was having earlier while we were eating lunch."

"No Chuck, I can't read minds. I just figured you'd want to talk this over with Ellie and Devon. That's why I suggested to the General that she have a jet on stand by" she replied, getting to her feet and, after taking Chuck's hand, pulling him gently to his feet. "Let's go see your sister."

"Ok."

"And, once we're airborne, maybe you can tell me what thoughts you were just apologizing for" she said with a smile as she began to lead the way down the steps.

**A/N:2 **The Talk with Ellie and some other stuff…next time. Thoughts?


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: **This is a little shorter than usual but I'm a little tired. Hope you like it. Remember the three 'don'ts'…'don't own'…don't make money doing' and, surprise, surprise…don't use the services of a beta. I'm still having fun so thanks to Jim. Thank you to everyone who's alerted, favorited or reviewed this or any of my stories, it really makes me feel that my scribbles are entertaining…especially when you take the time to review. Thoughts? _**JT**_

**Chuck Vs. A Blast From The Past - Chapter 11**

The flight from DC had left Chuck a nervous wreck and he was pretty sure that Sarah found the situation funny. They'd been settling into their seats when Casey had appeared in the hatch, a small bag slung over his shoulder. Stepping into the plane, he'd stopped in the aisle and, after reaching into his bag, pulled out a large envelope and tossed it towards them, snorting almost gleefully when the package had smacked Chuck in the forehead.

"Nice catch, moron. We're wheels up in five, get buckled in" he'd announced, turning to make his way towards the cockpit.

"Thanks, Casey" Chuck had called after him, rubbing at the center of his forehead that was stinging from the impact between the heavy envelope and his skull, "always a treat to fly 'Grunt Airline'. We'll take a couple of drinks and sandwiches once you change out of your 'captain's' suit and slide into your 'stewardess' outfit."

"It's Major, moron. If I do leave the cockpit, I better not find the two of you playing kissey face. No one's joining the mile high club on my plane" Casey had barked over his shoulder before slamming the cockpit door behind him.

"It's not his plane" Sarah had whispered into his ear while reaching over and making sure that his seat belt was securely fastened, winking at him when he looked at her, the warm memory of her breath against his ear filling his mind with images that left him blushing furiously.

Once airborne, Sarah had unbuckled herself, gotten to her feet and then spent the next ten minutes pretending to battle turbulence that only she seemed to be experiencing. When she'd fallen into his lap the second time, her arms finding their way around his neck, she'd complained about the 'rough air' and then attached her lips to his. When he'd finally been able to come up for air, the questioning look he'd given Sarah had been answered with a smirk.

"Just giving you a mouth to mouth demonstration since there's no stewardess to give the safety speech…unless you're hoping that Casey does change into a stewardess outfit and make the presentation" Sarah had explained.

"So, what's next…CPR?" Chuck had asked while Sarah got back to her feet.

"Why, Mr. Bartowski, are you asking to put your hands on my chest?" Sarah had shpt back with a faux shocked look on her face.

"I, uh, I…"

"Well, maybe after we eat" Sarah had said before moving away from him, towards what must have been the galley of the plane. "I'll be right back with something to drink and some snacks" she'd said over her shoulder as she walked away.

Chuck had watched her move away, mesmerized by the way her hips had swayed, sure that the motion wasn't caused by the turbulence that only the beautiful blonde seemed to be experiencing.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The rest of the flight had been filled with more 'turbulence' and the resultant lap landings, several more demonstrations of 'mouth to mouth' and whispered offers to show him the back of the plane which had taken all of his will power to turn down, secretly worried about the possibility of Casey, or someone else, finding them wearing far less clothing than normally expected on people flying cross country.

He was sure that Sarah was enjoying the teasing far more than she should have and by the time they finally touched down at the Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, Chuck was more than ready for a cold shower…or three. He was sure that his will power wouldn't have lasted if it hadn't been for the two trips to the head and a thirty minutes visit to the cockpit that he'd made under the guise of quizzing Casey about working for the NSA. He was pretty sure that both Casey and Sarah saw through his sudden interest in the benefits of being a government employee and when he'd returned to his seat, he'd found Sarah staring intently at the display of her phone, her thumbs stabbing frantically at the device as she worked her lower lip between her teeth.

"Angry Birds? Really?" he'd asked, more surprised to find Sarah playing a video game than he'd been by Casey's honest and thoughtful advice about working for the NSA.

"I wanted to play with something that wanted to play with me but that didn't happen so…" she'd answered, her eyes never leaving the device in her hands.

"I, uh…"

"Get over here and sit down Chuck" she'd ordered, "and call Ellie to let her know that we're less than an hour away."

"Yes ma'am" he'd answered and within moments of re-taking his seat, Sarah was once again in his lap where she remained for the rest of the flight, putting far more 'body English' into the game in her hands than was required. Hell, the game didn't require any 'body English' but he wasn't about to point that out to the writhing bundle of sexy gamer that made his lap such a happy place.

After touching down and taxiing into a hangar near the edge of the airfield, the three occupants of the craft grabbed their meager possessions and made their way to the plane's exit, Casey being the first down the stairs and headed towards the Suburban that sat running with two agents standing alongside it, their ear pieces and sunglasses leaving no doubt about their current employment.

Chuck noticed right away the change in both of his traveling companions who were suddenly on high alert, each of them watching everything around them, obviously searching for anything that might be seen as a possible threat. Without saying a word, they'd each taken up positions on either side and their hands seemed to be staying close to their waists, clearly keeping their weapons within easy reach.

"Is this really necessary?" Chuck asked, his glances leaving no doubt about the source of his question.

"We still don't know who was behind that mess on the highway, Bartowski. Would you prefer that we forget all about the people who tried to snatch you out from under a NSA convoy?" Casey asked before stepping forward and going through a quick exchange of id's and passwords before opening the rear, driver's side door and, after a quick glance inside the vehicle, stepping aside and signaling for Chuck to get inside.

Not bothering to answer the obviously rhetorical question, he started to climb in and then realized that a broken arm made it a little bit harder to slide into a rather large piece of American automotive engineering that sat a little farther from the ground than his beloved Nerd Herder. Before he could say a word, he felt Sarah's hands on his ass and before he could offer any comment about the assist, he was sliding across the seat and his blonde helper was climbing in behind him, a smile on her face.

"Nice buns, Chuck" Sarah offered in a quiet voice while giving her eyebrows a quick waggle. "When does that cast come off, anyway? I don't mind helping out" she added with a wink before turning around and pulling the door closed behind her.

"Better you than me" Casey grunted from the front seat.

"I'm sure Chuck wouldn't mind" Sarah said while smiling at the young man sitting next to her.

"If that ever happens, Walker, he'll end up going out the window on the other side of the vehicle and you know what that would mean…no more boy toy! "

"Hey" Chuck blurted out.

"Don't worry Bartowski, you're safe …at least until after your sister feeds us" the big man said over his shoulder. "Now, buckle up so we can get on the road."

"Don't worry Chuck, I won't let him grab your ass" Sarah said with a smile while making sure that his lap belt was properly fastened. "We're good to go, Casey" she announced before allowing herself to ease back into the seat, reaching out a hand and taking Chuck's free hand in hers.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Dinner at Casa Bartowski had been an event with loads of Ellie's great cooking and a couple bottles of wine. The conversation had been light with Ellie regaling them with stories of strange Emergency Room patients including one about a Hollywood writer who'd been admitted with a Ken doll stuck in an orifice that definitely wasn't designed for whatever games the man had been playing. When she refused to name the man but agreed to describe the show, a 'Spy rom-com' that everyone at the table admitted to watching, Casey had snorted twice before saying 'well, that explains that third season'. Everyone at the table had stared at the older man in shock, surprised that Major John Casey actually watched anything that wasn't on the History channel.

"What?" Casey had asked, "I like that one actor who used to be on that Cowboys in space show."

The NSA agent's admission had Chuck coughing after a spectacular spit take that sprayed the other side of the table with the mouthful of wine he'd been in the process of swallowing. While Sarah lightly pounded on his back, trying to ease the coughing fit, Ellie and Devon sat in stunned silence, with wine dripping from their faces, while Morgan rolled around on the floor, howling with laughter.

"Laugh it up, fuzz ball" Casey told the little man on the floor which only served to push Chuck over the edge and he was soon struggling to breath between fits of coughing and laughter. By the time Chuck and Morgan had gotten themselves under control, Ellie and Sarah had managed to get the mess cleared from the table while Casey gave Devon a hand washing the dishes.

Chuck finally managed to get Morgan up from the floor and then watched in shock as the two spies showed a surprising domestic side. As much as he wanted to make a comment about Casey's familiarity with a kitchen and it's cleaning, he decided to concentrate on find a good reason to get Morgan to call it a night, knowing that the conversation that he needed to have with his sister and her boyfriend wasn't one that his life long friend should be included in. Before he could find the perfect way to ease Morgan's exit, his buddy solved the problem by announcing that he'd promised to help Jeff and Lester set up for the first paying gig that the their band had ever landed.

'Saved by Jeffster' Chuck told himself in disbelief, 'how the hell did that ever happen?'

"All right, buddy. I'll talk to you tomorrow" Chuck said, on his feet and already guiding Morgan towards the front door, refusing to look a gift horse in the mouth. "You'll have to tell me all about it" he added, gently pushing the shorter man out the front door and quickly closing it behind him before Morgan got the chance to offer to stay.

Turning back around, he found four pairs of eyes staring at him, everyone stunned into silence by the abrupt and totally unexpected departure of the man who usually was a shining example of someone who overstayed their welcome, often to the point of being forcibly ejected.

"Before anyone asks, I have no idea and I'm not really sure I want to know" Chuck said with a shrug of his shoulders. "Now, Ellie and Devon, I…uh, we need to have a talk."

"What's up, Chuck?" Ellie asked right away, a little concern in her voice.

"El, how about getting a pot of coffee started. This might take a while…"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

The sound of his alarm clock pulled Chuck from the most amazing dream. Sarah had been there and she'd been demonstrating 'mouth to mouth' again and he'd been practicing his 'CPR' with a very vocal and enthusiastic blonde CIA agent. As he regretfully let the last remnants of the dream slip away, he realized that a warm and very curvy body was clinging to him, a pair of arms wrapped tightly around his upper body and a slow and steady warm breath told him that a soft mouth was resting deliciously close to his throat.

After blinking his eyes a few times to clear some of the sleep 'fuzz', he was about to say Sarah's name when she was suddenly wide awake and her startlingly blue eyes were staring into his.

"Good morning, Chuck" she said softly. "How are you feeling? How did you sleep?"

" Surprisingly good and the best I have in a long time" he replied, answering both questions honestly. "How about you?"

"The same" Sarah responded and then leaned closer to place a gentle kiss on her bedmate's lips.

"How did we…did we…?"

"We were so tired after the talk and you suggested that I crash here but, no, your manly virtue is still intact."

"What?"

"I wouldn't have said no but you really were too tired to do much more than stumble into your room. I even had to undress you" Sarah explained, wanting to laugh at the blush that rushed up Chuck's neck when her explanation got to the portion of the evening that involved her taking off his clothes. 'Your boxers are still on" she explained with a pout, "although part of you got 'up' before the rest of you" she added with an evil smile before grinding herself against his morning 'friend'.

"Stop that, you evil, evil woman. I need to get up…"

"You already are" Sarah said with a salacious smirk.

"And go take a shower…alone"

"Spoilsport"

"Because we have a busy day ahead of us."

"Want me to scrub your back?"

"That would make it impossible for me to shower alone, now wouldn't it, Sarah Walker, CIA Agent and temptress extraordinaire."

"Damn you and your undeniable nerd logic, Charles Bartowski" she answered with a pout. "Can I at least have a 'good morning' kiss?"

"I can't say no to you Sarah…"

"Yes, you can…and have, more times in the last twenty-four hours than I like to think about. You do like girls, don't you, Chuck?" Sarah asked with a smiling pout on her face, already knowing the answer but loving the chance to tease the curly haired man who was currently staring at her.

"That's it! I'm going to take a shower."

"Hey, what about my 'good morning' kiss?"

"If you'll help me wrap my cast, I'll give you your kiss" Chuck answered as he wiggled out of her grasp and slid towards the side of the bed.

"You've got a deal" Sarah answered quickly and then scooted after her former asset, reaching out a hand to push him out of the bed and towards the bathroom.

"Hey, I thought that was only for helping me get into big trucks"

"Oh, right. Sorry about that, Chuck. I promise to only use that 'grip' when helping you into Suburbans" Sarah told him, an innocent smile on her face. but one hand held out of Chuck view, fingers crossed.

"Ok. Let's get this wrapped so I can shower and we can get this day started" he said before turning around and heading towards the door that lead to the bathrooom.

"Right behind you, Chuck."

**A/N: 2** Got a little tired. Next time? Ellie and Awesome's decision and all that it entails. Thoughts?


End file.
